By the time you read this, Canadians will have chosen a new government of some type. During election campaigns, promises get made then all too often get broken when it’s convenient to do so, so having leaders we can trust is vitally important, as they make decisions about things that are important to every one of us.
Here’s a local example to which we should pay attention. Last year, the District of Squamish replaced an old, small wooden bridge on Eagle Run Drive. It was apparently unable to support the weight of large trucks, so it had to go. Makes sense. However, when I saw the finished product, it was a remarkable structure, replete with extensive retaining walls along the creek bed. It looked pricey, so I filed a Freedom of Information request to get the details. Ironically, the district charged me almost $200 to get the information, so I’m not sure where the term “freedom” comes from.
In any event, as I flipped the pages, it turned out to be more interesting than the latest bestselling spy novel. Gaps in the procurement process show that while bids were solicited for the design and construction of the new bridge, the engineering firm that informed the district they needed to replace the bridge in the first place seemed to appear out of nowhere. No apparent bid to select them. Someone’s friend, perhaps?
Two independent engineering cost estimates for bridge construction appeared reasonable except that they were about 40 per cent too low and the final actual cost was much higher. In an internal project memo, the team stated that “no fancy retaining wall is required,” and subsequently a magnificent retaining wall was constructed. And of course, there was no record of why the decision was made. The story goes on and on, but you get the point.
After the dust settled, the total cost was pushing $1 million. There are of course many such bridges in town, so I suppose we should expect to be ponying up millions more tax dollars in the near future to replace these imminent hazards. Anyone out there feel that your tax bill is too low? With the same people making the same decisions, the $23 million we’re paying for the water system upgrades in town may be just the start of plugging the holes. Remember the Oceanfront cost debacle?
Or, we could start holding our public institutions accountable to do what they said they would do. If we can’t trust “public servants” to serve the public instead of themselves, things are going to turn out badly for all of us, and not just when it comes to bridges.
