Toronto Union Station Revitalization | ?m | ?s | City of Toronto | NORR

Mercenary said:
Damn, they got lots to do.
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Not really, like renovating a house, the things that take longest are the hidden stuff like pipes, wires and foundations. This area has got its final flooring and the pillars will be covered over pretty fast. They had finished most of the ceilings before they closed off the 'leather shop by-pass' so I think it is not necessarily going to take TOO much longer to be able to open a walkway through this area to/from TTC via the east Front moat. I guess we will just have to wait and see!
 
DSC said:
Not really, like renovating a house, the things that take longest are the hidden stuff like pipes, wires and foundations. This area has got its final flooring and the pillars will be covered over pretty fast. They had finished most of the ceilings before they closed off the 'leather shop by-pass' so I think it is not necessarily going to take TOO much longer to be able to open a walkway through this area to/from TTC via the east Front moat. I guess we will just have to wait and see!
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Unlike a house however, the City of Toronto lawyers would likely not permit public access until it is fully completed. Just because a portion is accessible does not mean it is safe for use by the public.
 
Richard White said:
Unlike a house however, the City of Toronto lawyers would likely not permit public access until it is fully completed. Just because a portion is accessible does not mean it is safe for use by the public.
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Of course it has to be safe but you may have noticed we have been using Union Station for the last decade and it is certainly not all finished. .
 
DSC said:
Of course it has to be safe but you may have noticed we have been using Union Station for the last decade and it is certainly not all finished. .
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No but the areas they are opening are completely finished. The moat was not open until it was finished nor was the York Concourse. Also keep in mind that the parts of the station under construction were surrounded by hoarding to prevent access.
 
Richard White said:
No but the areas they are opening are completely finished. The moat was not open until it was finished nor was the York Concourse. Also keep in mind that the parts of the station under construction were surrounded by hoarding to prevent access.
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It is very possible to create safe pathways, and they have done it at Union before (remember the scaffolding platform over the temporary metal stairs at the leather shop bypass?) of course I do not know if they will do this again but they are working hard on Bay Concourse area at TTC and leading off Great Hall so it seems likely. We should be patient and see what they do!
 
DSC said:
Not really, like renovating a house, the things that take longest are the hidden stuff like pipes, wires and foundations. This area has got its final flooring and the pillars will be covered over pretty fast. They had finished most of the ceilings before they closed off the 'leather shop by-pass' so I think it is not necessarily going to take TOO much longer to be able to open a walkway through this area to/from TTC via the east Front moat. I guess we will just have to wait and see!
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From what I can see in the above photo, and from what we could see while the leather shop bypass was still open, the cladding on the pillars is already installed (quite some time ago). That's why some of them are covered in wood for protection.

Richard White said:
No but the areas they are opening are completely finished. The moat was not open until it was finished nor was the York Concourse. Also keep in mind that the parts of the station under construction were surrounded by hoarding to prevent access.
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There are many areas that were unfinished and open to the public. The moat has been partially opened many times. Heck it's still not finished, there are still temporary steel grates and banisters installed. Temporary lighting and electrical hanging.

The old leather shop bypass was the epitome of unfinished. If I stood on my tippy toes my head would hit all the unprotected electrical and HVAC. Not to mention all the temporary wood flooring and sketchy temporary stairs.

The Bay West teamway... there's netting above to protect pedestrians from falling concrete; tarps, fences and hoarding. Most of the stairwells are unfinished with temporary hoarding and lighting.

The Bay East teamway has a ditch dug out and covered in sketchy temporary wood boards right now.

...Honestly, aside from the York Concourse, the rest of Union is unfinished. I don't see why the Bay Concourse would be treated any differently than the rest.
 
This (today's G & M) may explain why they fell so far behind on Union Station work and were replaced ...

Bondfield Construction audit finds $80-million in improper supplier payments

GREG MCARTHUR AND KAREN HOWLETT
PUBLISHED 5 HOURS AGOUPDATED NOVEMBER 6, 2019
FOR SUBSCRIBERS

Executives with one of Ontario’s largest builders of public-sector projects participated in a scheme in which the company paid $80-million in suspicious invoices to suppliers who channeled some of the money back to company insiders, auditors have alleged in an investigation report filed in court.
 
DSC said:
This (today's G & M) may explain why they fell so far behind on Union Station work and were replaced ...

Bondfield Construction audit finds $80-million in improper supplier payments

GREG MCARTHUR AND KAREN HOWLETT
PUBLISHED 5 HOURS AGOUPDATED NOVEMBER 6, 2019
FOR SUBSCRIBERS

Executives with one of Ontario’s largest builders of public-sector projects participated in a scheme in which the company paid $80-million in suspicious invoices to suppliers who channeled some of the money back to company insiders, auditors have alleged in an investigation report filed in court.
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And not one Ministry, ABC caught this - I'd say the current system is borderline useless.

AoD
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
And not one Ministry, ABC caught this.
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I'm unsure why you would expect them to. Insurance protects the project from all kinds of unexpected problems with contractors. What processes are followed within a company is really up to them and their lenders/investors.

That said, why their lenders/investors weren't insisting on a thorough annual 3rd party audit is beyond me.
 
rbt said:
I'm unsure why you would expect them to. Insurance protects the project from all kinds of unexpected problems with contractors. What processes are followed within a company is really up to them and their lenders/investors.

That said, why their lenders/investors weren't insisting on a thorough annual 3rd party audit is beyond me.
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Maybe that's the problem? Insurance couldn't protect against schedule slippage. Like Union Station and St. Mike's for two?

AoD
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
Maybe that's the problem? Insurance couldn't protect against schedule slippage.
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AFAIK, the insurance company adheres to and completes the original contract, including fines for missing the deadline.

Of course, the premium (and bid price) increases as risk is moved to the 3rd party. Toronto tenders are typically setup for the lowest price where interruption is minimal. Gardiner being one of the few exceptions.
 
My spouse told me the construction industries has often been prone to waste (an unfortunate duh).

Whether be the #Lavscam stuff, or this new Bondfield stuff, or anything construction industry.

(He lived in Montreal during the 1976 olympics, and the Big O construction cost scandal of lore).

And check out Berlin's airport boondoggle (Wikipedia, article) -- an mega airport expansion supposed to open in 2011 but has not opened yet.
Makes Mirabel look like a beacon of spending efficiency!
 
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