Council gathers evidence for litigation

Whakatane District Council is collecting evidence to support its legal case as building contractors begin to dismantle the Aquatic Centre internal walls before the repair works can start.

The Council’s Director of Works & Service’s Haydn Read says while it may appear a little quiet at the Aquatic Centre; the builders are working with experts gathering evidence that is important for the litigation process.

‘This is a relatively slow process but is vitally important if Council is to be successful in its legal claim against the Architect. The gathering of evidence must be completed accurately and by the person who will give expert evidence on the Council’s behalf. The time required to do this work has been factored into the project timeline’.

This is a very sensitive and extremely difficult project for the Council and one which is at a significant cost to the community.

‘I therefore cannot overemphasise the need for getting it right and ensuring that we end up with a facility that the community can enjoy and benefit from for a long time,’ said Mr Read.

Mr Read said the Building Contractor is in no way slowing the process down, but is working closely with architects Alexander & Co and the Council to deliver this project as planned. Alexander & Co were engaged by the Council in early 2007 to investigate the defects and design the repair solution for the Aquatic Centre and now form part a group of organisations supporting and managing these works.

This is an extremely difficult project and significant efforts have been taken to accurately estimate the amount of the repair work, but like all repair projects the exact amount of work required will not be known until the dismantling component is completed. There is nothing at this point to suggest that the work will not be completed within the projected timelines, which are between seven and eight months.

The Council has and will continue to keep the community informed about the progress and expected timelines for the completion of the repairs.