TTC: Other Items (catch all)

[muller877]

Byford describes the TTC's headquarters at Davisville as a "Stygian hellhole", and that sounds accurate. Persistent mold problems, asbestos, no sprinklers above the basement, elevators at the end of their life... The place is a dump.

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/tra...ants-to-get-out-of-hellhole-headquarters.html


[Edit: salsa beat me to it by a split second.]

Should they first look at their employment needs for the future? I understand Tory has basically given up that the TTC can actually manage a construction job. So there should be less space requirements for the engineers doing this work.

How about a review of middle management? Companies (e.g. TD) are getting rid of middle management (or getting rid of upper and promoting middle without a pay increase)

And have they implemented a open concept design? You can get 30% more workers in the same space that existed 20 years ago. I know a lot of companies have shoved VP's into Manager offices and then put 4 cubicles into a VP office.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Any idea why the TTC owns two houses?

 

[TheTigerMaster]

I wouldn't want to spend 15 minutes in that office. Wow.

 

[smably]

Should they first look at their employment needs for the future? I understand Tory has basically given up that the TTC can actually manage a construction job. So there should be less space requirements for the engineers doing this work.

How about a review of middle management? Companies (e.g. TD) are getting rid of middle management (or getting rid of upper and promoting middle without a pay increase)

And have they implemented a open concept design? You can get 30% more workers in the same space that existed 20 years ago. I know a lot of companies have shoved VP's into Manager offices and then put 4 cubicles into a VP office.

Even if they could somehow double the capacity of that building and halve the workforce, they're still nowhere near being able to fit everyone in that building.

 

[nfitz]

Any idea why the TTC owns two houses?

Protection for future expansion?

I wouldn't want to spend 15 minutes in that office. Wow.

Start walking around the office space in city hall. In the private sector we'd fire our facilities manager if they dared give staff such decrepit furniture. For some reason, Torontonians seems to think it's okay to make municipal staff work in atrocious conditions.

 

[Amare]

Wow pictures really do say a thousand words. We've heard for many years how bad the conditions are at the Davisville HQ; but it's really an embarrassment how bad things are over there. That buffoon RoFo should've taken a visit there too see how bad things really are over there, instead of opening his foolish mouth and saying that it would be "luxurious" to build a new HQ for the TTC.

Well we can thank him, because now York Mills is a lost opportunity and if they want to tear down and rebuild at the same site it would cost tens of millions more. I think the best case scenario would be for them to look at the Yonge and Eglinton area (the old Eglinton bus bays to be exact). It would be a perfect opportunity to join with an future development that takes place on that site. The only negative thing about that is that they would have to wait at least 10 years with that option.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Too bad the old Kodak building at Mt. Dennis would be too small.

 

[salsa]

That buffoon RoFo should've taken a visit there too see how bad things really are over there, instead of opening his foolish mouth and saying that it would be "luxurious" to build a new HQ for the TTC.

Ford was more interested in touring the living conditions of his crackstituents in TCHC buildings, then voting against anything that improves said conditions.

 

[Johnny Au]

You can typewrite on the Internet!?

Of course I can.

I am unsure if the current TTC head offices have asbestos or not.

 

[W. K. Lis]

You can typewrite on the Internet!?

Use the COURIER font.

 

[christiesplits]

I wouldn't want to spend 15 minutes in that office. Wow.

It all comes down to optics.

Just read the comments on CBC and TheStar.ca: "You have a 1950s transit system, you get a 1950s head office" and "TYPICAL FATCAT PUBLIC SECTOR." Do you recall the uproar when TCHC renovated their offices when there was a massive building repair backlog? Ironically, as is the case with 24 Sussex Drive, the longer you wait to make "frivolous" repairs, the more it costs the taxpayer in the long-run.

 

[Duck]

That's really sad to see (the state of the Davisville offices). Especially after seeing how beautiful the Leslie Barn project turned out. Really don't think it's too much to ask that people be given a comfortable working environment.

 

[typezed]

There are plenty of missing ceiling tiles in the stations themselves. Maybe they should use the need to replace ceiling tiles in a bathroom in their own building as a case study for finding why they're unable to perform simple maintenance. (Perhaps they'll also be able to discover why a women's bathroom is still painted pink in 2015.) If a floor needs to be fixed in the boardroom why can't someone who answers to the directors have someone up there to work on it that week? They must have people on staff to do these things. Find out how many levels of decision-making there are for simple fixes and if anyone is actually responsible for specific areas and problems in their buildings. Because sometimes you walk in a station and see some item of disrepair and can't believe there is anyone in their massive workforce who is charged with seeing that something is fixed.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

It all comes down to optics.

Just read the comments on CBC and TheStar.ca: "You have a 1950s transit system, you get a 1950s head office" and "TYPICAL FATCAT PUBLIC SECTOR." Do you recall the uproar when TCHC renovated their offices when there was a massive building repair backlog? Ironically, as is the case with 24 Sussex Drive, the longer you wait to make "frivolous" repairs, the more it costs the taxpayer in the long-run.

If my private sector office was in this condition, a lot of the employees would quit their jobs (no shortage of employers with better accommodations), the office manager's head would roll and we'd be in new accommodations ASAP.

 

[ksun]

If my private sector office was in this condition, a lot of the employees would quit their jobs (no shortage of employers with better accommodations), the office manager's head would roll and we'd be in new accommodations ASAP.

Well then why the TTC staff didn't quit already? Maybe they got a fantastic job that they can't replace with a private sector one already.
And there are plenty of private sector job with similar or worse conditions which I would hardly call bad.