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2012-08-24 at 11:16

Re-opening?

By Jeff Labine, tbnewswatch.com
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City administration has recommended the Centennial Botanical Conservatory be partially reopened to the public following some temporary repairs.

The city closed the conservatory in February after reports came in of glass falling from the roof.  Since then there has been a public outcry to have the conservatory reopened. The city’s facilities and fleet department released its recommendations for the conservatory online Friday.

The report, which is going before council Monday night, recommends the conservatory reopen its tropical display house to the public, but only after placing a temporary safety netting to protect visitors and staff from falling glass.

The temporary repairs would cost about $76,000.

Other recommendations include:

• Keeping the East and West wings display areas closed
• Decommissioning and demolishing the greenhouse and access walkway to be included in the 2013 budget proposal
• Creating a long-term facility and renewal strategy for 2014

Current River Coun. Andrew Foulds said the report was balanced, but admitted he was disappointed and embarrassed the city allowed the conservatory to get to the state it was in.

“We dropped the ball on this one,” Foulds said. “I’m discouraged about the state the building is in. Legacy projects like this not only serve as a symbolic role in our city but also have a real quality of life in our city as well. There are some major structural issues that have to be dealt with and council will have to put its mind to in the future on what it wants to do.”

Foulds said he wasn’t in favour of a quick fix to the conservatory and would rather a see a slow process that included public consultation, a proper review of the facility and the possibility of relocating the conservatory to a new location.

He suggested the conservatory and the Thunder Bay Art Gallery could both be relocated to the Pool 6 area near Prince Arthur’s Landing.

“They are both off the beaten track,” he said. “They have low visibility and don’t have a very high profile. I think there are some pretty viable synergies between the art gallery and the conservatory around Pool 6 for example.

“Imagine people coming off a cruise ship and going to a fantastic facility that celebrates the arts and nature and then be able to celebrate everything else at the waterfront.”

 

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Comments

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Me n My Opinion says:
I agree with Foulds on this one. Having both the Art Gallery and the Conservatory at the waterfront is a great fit. They would both be tremendous additions down there.

However, what's the cost for doing it, and who can share in that expense?
8/24/2012 11:29:58 AM
mikevirtanen1961 says:
At least 2.8 million, says the report. In the Age of Austerity, I wouldn't count on other levels of government pitching in much.
8/24/2012 1:47:53 PM
concerned coco says:
I the Conservatory gets moved, IT WILL NEVER BE THE SAME SIZE!

I really hope the city keeps The Conservatory open where it is.

Don't get fooled by thier "let's move them here" ploy cause it will never be the same for both The Conservatory & The Art Gallery.
8/24/2012 11:45:52 AM
chezhank says:
City Council drops ball again!
Aug.14
"City council has given the federal government some direction in projects they would like to see funded.

Council voted to give five recommendations for the Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund at last night's regular scheduled meeting. The new fund provided by the federal government would support repairs and improvements as well as expansions of existing community infrastructures.

At the top of the list was Delaney Arena and Fort William Stadium. The recommendation listed the two arenas needed improvements to the parking lot areas, an expansion for concession preparation and new accessible washrooms.'

Can someone ask Mr.Foulds why the conservatory is not on that list?
8/24/2012 12:08:48 PM
She says:
If you move the beautiful plants and flowers would they die? That would be a shame.
8/24/2012 12:08:56 PM
tbay99 says:
Or maybe we could shut up down and save the tax payers some money for once?
8/24/2012 12:17:10 PM
DazeofThunder says:
If you compare the 250K that was spent to repair a concrete statue on the top of a building that no one cares about, 76K is a pittance for something that people actually want...
8/24/2012 12:48:09 PM
Chaos says:
When has the city actually caught the ball Mr Fould?

8/24/2012 12:51:55 PM
citizenreporter says:
Figures they'd reopen now that the wedding season is winding down. They lost out on a lot of revenue by keeping it closed all summer.

I don't think building another conservatory on the waterfront is a bad idea, just hope they build it in a timely manner and don't dawdle on it. In the meantime keep the original one open for as long as possible.
8/24/2012 12:53:57 PM
panzerIV says:
76,000 is a lot to open a small area of the conservatory. If in the end they intend to move the building elsewhere I would much rather see that money be put towards the new one. Spending money on a temporary structure when obviously there are plans to spend big money later is kind of silly.

Kind of like spending 30,000 on temporary stairs on High street when engineering has big plans for that roadway in the next 2 years.

Wasn't this part of the city's plan to save 1.5 million annually? If so where will those cuts now come from.
8/24/2012 1:14:45 PM
commonsense says:
The City manager has admitted that "did not fall". A piece was hanging loose, but the design means that broken pieces will fall to the outside.
The City WANTS this facility closed, to move to waterfront.
Why do we want to move public amenities to the Waterfront for benefit of the hotel and condos? We've done enough, given enough!
The present location is best suited with plenty of parking close by. You can drop a Sr. at the door, and quickly park. It is close to the many senior homes nearby, close enough to visit by wheelchair.
In October 2007 the City had an Energy Management report done by ProFor Engineering.
Replacement of the glass and boilers with energy efficient product could be done for about $860,000 with a pay-back in energy savings within 6-11 years, depending on type of glazing chosen.

The City chose not to act. They did not apply for funding available from Federal government to renew Centennial facilities.
Obsolescence by purposeful neglect!
8/24/2012 2:06:10 PM
get_the_chip_off_your_shoulder says:
I've said this for years before these issues came up in the news and I believe the pool 6 site would be the perfect place for the art gallery and the conservatory as this would allow for deep focus by the public on ideas and plans for the future when doing this. Such as adding more design features that allow for expanding both the art gallery and the conservatory without adding more cost for doing so and having the architecture to allow this and work well. Then we also have an opportunity to look forward to the future and have a design made that allow for new sections to be added to the structure(s) to include more tourism and local attractions such as a marine/ship wreck library, a science north type of facility, IMAX theatre(unless FWSP is still planning to build an IMAX as well as many other life enriching things like an aquarium. We don't have to build them now but we can spend to have the design made that can be added onto year by year without disrupting finished portions.
8/24/2012 2:07:19 PM
commonsense says:
The City manager has admitted that "did not fall". A piece was hanging loose, but the design means that broken pieces will fall to the outside.
The City WANTS this facility closed, to move to waterfront.
Why do we want to move public amenities to the Waterfront for benefit of the hotel and condos? We've done enough, given enough!
The present location is best suited with plenty of parking close by. You can drop a Sr. at the door, and quickly park. It is close to the many senior homes nearby, close enough to visit by wheelchair.
In October 2007 the City had an Energy Management report done by ProFor Engineering.
Replacement of the glass and boilers with energy efficient product could be done for about $860,000 with a pay-back in energy savings within 6-11 years, depending on type of glazing chosen.

The City chose not to act. They did not apply for funding available from Federal government to renew Centennial facilities.
Obsolescence by purposeful neglect!
8/24/2012 3:34:25 PM
commonsense says:
Editor-
PLEASE CORRECT MY EARLIER COMMENT, 1ST LINE, TO READ "GLASS" DID NOT FALL.
THX
8/24/2012 3:44:28 PM
Bertpeal says:
Mr Foulds suggestion is worthy of consideration by his colleagues on council. Should Mr Foulds have have made this suggestion BEFORE the expenditure of quite a bit of tax payer dollars($76,000) on this facility in it's PRESENT location? One of the original concerns expressed to council earlier by administration was the poor attendance of Thunder Bay citizens to this facility.In fact it was almost to the point of hardly any one showing up at all. The council is suppose to be concentrating on CORE CITY SERVICES.Some of us might question whether based on the lack of public interest this facility, should or would a conservatory be considered a core city service based on it's current location and lack of interest too date by the citizens? I'm reminded of the saying USE IT OR LOSEIT.
8/24/2012 4:03:13 PM
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