Share this Story : Ottawa Citizen Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

We should know by now why the parking garage collapsed | Opinion

Mohammed Adam: The city is reneging its responsibility for public safety as the garage owner moves ahead with plans to rebuild and reopen.

You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.

The owner of a downtown parking garage that partially collapsed last year, is wrong to refuse to explain publicly what caused the incident, even as work is set to begin on the rebuilding, and eventual reopening.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Unlimited digital access to the Ottawa Citizen.

Analysis on all things Ottawa by Bruce Deachman, Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, and others, award-winning newsletters and virtual events.

Opportunity to engage with our commenting community.

Ottawa Citizen ePaper.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Exclusive articles from Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, Andrew Duffy, Bruce Deachman and others. Plus, food reviews and event listings in the weekly newsletter, Ottawa, Out of Office.

Unlimited online access to Ottawa Citizen and 15 news sites with one account.

Ottawa Citizen ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.

Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.

Support local journalism.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one account.

Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.

Enjoy additional articles per month.

Get email updates from your favourite authors.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one account

Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments

Enjoy additional articles per month

Get email updates from your favourite authors

Sign In or Create an Account

And the city is reneging its responsibility for public safety by not getting involved, and demanding transparency and accountability, if garage owner Great West Life Realty Advisors (GWLRA) is not doing so.

According to a CBC report, GWLRA is planning to start the restructuring work “in the near future,” but is doing so without revealing what caused the collapse, in the first place. That’s unacceptable. “We need to know (what caused the collapse), and the fact that we don’t know is pretty frightening to me,” area councillor Ariel Troster told the public broadcaster.

It should be worrying to everyone. No permission to rebuild should be granted until clear answers on the cause of collapse are provided.

You’d think that in the face of such a major incident, it would be a no-brainer to investigate and make the findings public, but apparently not. More perplexing is the city’s silence or inaction. By now, the city should have made it clear to Great West Life that a private company engaging in public business has a responsibility to be transparent. And if it is unwilling, the city should step in, find out for themselves and issue a public report.

The public has a right to know so that we can all learn the right lessons to ensure nothing of the kind happens again. GWLRA says it is in constant communication with city staff as it moves ahead with rebuilding plans, but that is not good enough. The incident has wider implications. There may be individuals or companies that own similar parking garages, and they can learn from public findings to strengthen safety protocols.

City officials believe the most likely cause of the collapse to be a buildup of snow on the roof, the weight of which eventually forced a section to cave in, and send everything crashing down. But that really is speculation – informed or not – because there has been no independent investigation that would reveal the actual cause of the collapse and help the city decide the next course of action. If snow buildup is indeed the culprit, we have to understand that it could happen again because this is Ottawa – we get a lot of snow in winter. A public report will help guide the city and garage owners to make changes going forward.

Jeff Leiper — 'to the female mayor'? | Opinion

So now Matthew Luloff is taking responsibility for his actions? | Opinion

Advertisement 1Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.document.addEventListener(`DOMContentLoaded`,function(){let template=document.getElementById(`oop-ad-template`);if(template&&!template.dataset.adInjected){let clone=template.content.cloneNode(!0);template.replaceWith(clone),template.parentElement&&(template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected=`true`)}});

The collapse, which happened February 26 last winter, would probably have been worse had someone not spotted cracks in a column on one of the garage’s pillars the day before, and called 911. Subsequently, engineers determined there could be an imminent collapse, and the city ordered an evacuation. About 12 hours later, a section collapsed damaging several vehicles. Luckily, no one was hurt. The person who reported the damage may have saved lives.

Garbage collection is changing. You might be facing three weeks without a pickup News

Garbage collection is changing. You might be facing three weeks without a pickup

More than 30 Petawawa troops suffer frostbite during Arctic exercise Defence Watch

More than 30 Petawawa troops suffer frostbite during Arctic exercise

Advertisement 2Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.document.addEventListener(`DOMContentLoaded`,function(){let template=document.getElementById(`oop-ad-template`);if(template&&!template.dataset.adInjected){let clone=template.content.cloneNode(!0);template.replaceWith(clone),template.parentElement&&(template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected=`true`)}});

'New issue' stalls return of O-Train LRT service in east end News

'New issue' stalls return of O-Train LRT service in east end

'Not just a cut, it's a decimation': Union leaders slam government cuts Public Service

'Not just a cut, it's a decimation': Union leaders slam government cuts

What happens when you don't die on time? News

What happens when you don't die on time?

Great West Life says it will rebuild the garage to the “highest building standards,” as anyone would expect. The company may well have good intentions, but ensuring public safety should not be left to self-regulating private companies to determine standards. The city must be the one deciding what must be done, and whether the parking garage can safely reopen.

Troster is right to be frustrated about the lack of answers from Great Life, and her concern must be taken seriously. If staff won’t act, Troster should bring a council motion to direct the city’s building code department to take over the investigation. Several cars were damaged in the incident. Imagine if people were in them. It is a miracle that no one died or was injured. Next time, we may not be so lucky. Lives are at stake, so let’s get this right.

Mohammed Adam is an Ottawa journalist and commentator. Reach him at nylamiles48@gmail.com

Share this Story : Ottawa Citizen Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.

© Ottawa Citizen