After 34 years of operations, the elevators at city hall will soon be modernized to increase performance and allow for both to again operate at the same time.
During city council’s May 27 regular meeting, council unanimously approved a motion to award ThyssenKrupp Elevator (Canada) Limited the contract to modernize the elevators for $323,069.45. Funding for this project will come from the Facilities Building Reserve ($123,069.45) and from the PR 64 fund ($200,000).
By modernizing the components of both elevators, the elevators’ performance will increase through faster floor-to-floor dispatching times, smoother rides, better floor accuracy, improved energy efficiency and the ability to run both elevators simultaneously, according to a city administration report.
Both elevators are expected to be modernized and fully operational by the end of 2019.
Background
The south elevator has been out of commission since last December when it was identified that the elevators and control systems were out of date and could no longer be re-programmed or replaced since the original manufacturer was out of business, the report said.
If the municipality continued to run both elevators, there was a high likelihood the entire control panel would fail and result in a complete system failure. Therefore, the south elevator was shut down while the north elevator was allowed to run on basic controls.
Council discussion
The Facilities Building Reserve has been funded by an annual contribution of $20,000 per year from the parks and recreation capital budget, but that didn’t happen in 2018, pointed out Coun. Brian Swanson. He was curious why that was.
It was overlooked the past couple of years because of the changes in administration in the parks and rec department, explained finance director Brian Acker. It fell out of the budget, but it has now been brought to the attention of the parks director and will return.
Several requests for funding for projects not included in the 2019 budget have come to council this year, said Swanson. This includes funding for a new payroll software upgrade and now the elevator upgrade.
“I realize we need elevators at city hall,” he continued. “But at budget time, there were reductions made at the last minute, including road repairs. Then things start coming in through side door that take a lot of money.”
The city hall building is open to the public and not just employees, said Mayor Fraser Tolmie. Residents who might have mobility issues need to have access to the second, third and fourth floors.
Council then approved the motion to fund the elevator repairs.
The next regular council meeting is June 10.
