An executive summary of that report, from Williams Engineering Canada, was presented at the May 7 meeting of council.
In it, Gord Rajewski, the company’s regional director for Northern Alberta, summarizes the issues by saying, “Our review of the architectural drawings indicates several ‘gaps’ in the building envelope detailing. It is apparent that these gaps in detailing/understanding were in many cases transferred to the site/as-built construction.”
He also notes that inadequate materials were used and advises the municipality to remove all of the sloped cedar shake and shingle roofing to expose the decking, so a “fully-adhered air barrier membrane” can be applied. The summary goes on to outline the way the membrane should be adhered, air sealed and insulated before the roof is re-assembled.
The $8.5 million library renovation and expansion project—led by Stantec Architecture and Delnor Construction—has been plagued with issues since the beginning and was last reported at a million dollars over budget in July 2012.
Work on the building halted a number of months ago because of mechanical issues and the legal issues that accompanied them.
Rajewski is an Accepted Inspector with the Alberta Roofing Contractors Association (ARCA). He was selected to review the library by the project contractors, who were presented with a list of recognized experts chosen by the municipality.
Allowing the contractors to choose was the municipality’s way of ensuring all parties agreed on the competence of the consultant, said Peter Waterworth, chief administrative officer for the municipality.
“Both the architects and the builders have been very cooperative in the process to get this done,” he said.
Heather Bretz, the project manager for Stantec, will attend the May 21 meeting of council to give an “overall briefing on the mechanical delays, the other issues that have been plaguing us, as well as the impact of this latest report,” said Waterworth.
“I think the time is right for [council] to have the opportunity to question our consultants and possibly the builders.”
It is not yet clear how the project will proceed or who will pay for the errors, as there are still liabilities to work out, but more should be known soon.
“We should be getting a schedule soon from the contractor, of when everything is going to be finished and the actual opening date, and we’re really excited about seeing that,” said Bretz.
During last week’s council meeting, Mayor Richard Ireland advised council that there are still a lot of unknowns, so it’s best not to prejudge liability.
“I suggest we make every effort to enhance opportunities to get on with the job rather than finger pointing.”
