Calls for B.C. premier to reverse Metro Vancouver's pause on wastewater review
A group of councillors from several municipalities is calling on B.c. Premier David Eby to reverse a decision by the Metro Vancouver Board to pause an independent review of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The beleaguered project has ballooned in cost from an original estimate of $700 million to $3.86 billion – and the estimated completion date has been delayed by a decade, from 2020 to 2030.
'The taxpayers of Metro Vancouver and Surrey absolutely need to get to the bottom of this to know why their taxes are going up so much, and we haven't had a clear explanation,' said Surrey Coun. Linda Annis, who signed her name to the letter urging the premier to step in.
Kash Heed of Richmond, Richard T. Lee of Burnaby and Daniel Fontaine of New Westminster are the other councillors calling for the review to proceed.
On Friday, Metro Vancouver cited ongoing litigation as the reason for suspending the independent review, which it launched in June of 2024.
'After careful consideration, the board has decided the public interest is best served by resolving the legal dispute with the previous contractor before undertaking the review,' Metro Vancouver Board Chair Mike Hurley said in a news release.
Metro Vancouver has filed suit against Acciona Wastewater Solutions LP – and the company has filed a counterclaim against the political body.
Barring any new developments or settlements, the litigation is scheduled to go to trial in March of 2027.
Annis wants the review to proceed in the meantime.
'I think it's critical we get on with it now. And I was very disappointed to hear this was done as a closed vote,' she said about the decision being undertaken at a closed-door meeting.
'The directors need to disclose how they voted on this. The directors are not elected by taxpayers. They are appointed by their respective municipalities. There isn't transparency, and it's the taxpayer's money that's being spent through all of this.'
At an unrelated news conference Monday, CTV News asked Eby about the councillors' request for him to take action and order the review to continue.
'We're reviewing the decision of Metro Vancouver to delay doing a full review,' the premier said.
He added that he is aware of the ongoing litigation.
'There are two obviously crucial values for taxpayers at home here. One is to know that Metro Vancouver has the tools and capacity to deal with big infrastructure projects and do it responsibly in a way that minimizes costs for people at home,' Eby said.
'The other is that Metro Vancouver, if they were wronged by the contracting company, that they're able to recover in court, and offset some of the losses that taxpayers and all of us are facing as a result.'
Metro Vancouver did not immediately make any of the directors available for an interview following a request from CTV News.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Globe and Mail
34 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Scotiabank Keeps Their Hold Rating on Eldorado Gold (EGO)
In a report released today, Tanya Jakusconek from Scotiabank maintained a Hold rating on Eldorado Gold, with a price target of $24.00. The company's shares closed yesterday at $20.50. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. According to TipRanks, Jakusconek is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 13.1% and a 61.90% success rate. Jakusconek covers the Basic Materials sector, focusing on stocks such as Compania de Minas Buenaventura SAA, Eldorado Gold, and Kinross Gold. Currently, the analyst consensus on Eldorado Gold is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $24.22, representing a 18.15% upside. In a report released on July 23, Canaccord Genuity also maintained a Hold rating on the stock with a C$29.00 price target. EGO market cap is currently $4.21B and has a P/E ratio of 12.79. Based on the recent corporate insider activity of 280 insiders, corporate insider sentiment is negative on the stock. This means that over the past quarter there has been an increase of insiders selling their shares of EGO in relation to earlier this year.
National Post
40 minutes ago
- National Post
From Alberta to Stephen Colbert: An imagined look at who Mark Carney will offer statehood to next
This week, Prime Minister Mark Carney promise to recognize a Palestinian state provided that its leaders can abandon violence and become a liberal democracy — and do so by the end of the summer. Article content Carney's conditions are basically impossible: Gaza remains in control of a literal terrorist organization that refuses to surrender, while the Palestinian areas of the West Bank are in the hands of a Palestinian Authority that has suspended elections since 2005. Article content Article content The other easy critique — and the one being made by the Conservatives — is that it rewards terrorism. For decades, Canada has explicitly rejected unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, including in a House of Commons vote held just last year. The only reason Carney is breaking with this precedent is because of a series of events that kicked off with the slaughter and mass-rape of hundreds of Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, 2023. Article content Article content At a time when Canada faces threats unlike any since the Second World War, complete national unity is an imperative. This may include the extension of self-determination to regions such as Alberta which pose barriers to this. However, this is predicated on Alberta's agreement to much-needed social and political reforms. If, in the next six weeks, the province can suspend its oil sector, transition its vehicle fleet to 50 per cent EVs and phase out its environmentally destructive beef sector in favour of more sustainable nutritive options such as quinoa or jicama we will recognize a State of Alberta at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly. Article content Article content Afghanistan Article content Article content The worsening condition of Afghan women and girls leaves no room for delay in a co-ordinated international action to extend peace and security in the recently established Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. For this reason, Canada will recognize Afghanistan and its Taliban government and urge our European partners to do the same. That is, if the Taliban government can sign a memorandum of understanding to recognize the systemic equity-hostile dogma of its current policies and commit to hiring marginalized Afghans in at least 11.5 per cent of civil service positions. Article content Puerto Rico and Stephen Colbert Article content Bullies like Donald Trump only understand strength. This is why, in a bold show of diplomatic convening power, Canada will unilaterally recognize Puerto Rico as the 51st U.S. state, and immediately petition Washington to make space for Puerto Rican representatives in its Senate and House of Representatives. We will also be instructing our diplomats to indefinitely continue recognizing Stephen Colbert as host of The Late Show.
CBC
41 minutes ago
- CBC
Piece by piece, cranes lift 84 prefabricated rentals into place in downtown Calgary
Along a busy street on the west end of downtown, another new rental building is going up — but instead of being built from scratch, prefabricated units are being craned into place, piece by piece. Each box being stacked contains two studio apartments, already filled with appliances like fridges, stoves, washers and dryers. Altogether, the pieces will make up 84 studio apartments across six storeys. "We can crane in all the modules into place in 10 days, which is a very fast pace in a highly densified area," said Adam Beattie, president of ATCO Structures. The modular units were manufactured at ATCO Structures' factory in southwest Calgary. They took roughly three months to complete. Jaydan Tait, CEO of Attainable Homes Calgary — the city-owned agency behind the project — says the speed of modular construction is a major advantage as Calgary tackles an ongoing housing crisis. "From the starting point of manufacture to a fully-stacked building will be from April 15 to the middle of August, so just a few months, unlike a typical construction build which can be on average about two years," said Tait. Compared to traditional builds, this approach requires less labour, says Tait, and the construction costs are lower since it takes less time to complete. He says that's reflected in the price charged to tenants. "We're going to be able to rent every single studio unit, 84 studios in there, for under $1,100 a month," he said. "So if you make about $44,000 to $50,000, you're the kind of client we want to live in this building and that's calculated on you not spending more than 30 per cent of your income on rent." Once all the elements — including stairwells and elevators — are in place, ATCO will work on adding external cladding and other finishing touches. The building is expected to be complete in December and will be ready for its first tenants on Jan. 1. Despite the haste of modular construction, Beattie said quality isn't an issue. "The modular structure actually has more structural components than a traditional build because not only do you have the structural requirements of the overall envelope of the building, but each module has intensified structural elements so it can be transported to site in a safe and effective manner," said Beattie. "It's got a huge amount of durability and longevity that can endure as much, if not more, than a traditional build and the quality of finish." Both Beattie and Tait say they're expecting the residential modular approach to become even more common as Canada tackles an ongoing housing shortage, especially with the federal government backing the technique as part of its housing plan. In the meantime, Attainable Homes Calgary is developing another modular project — this time, in Sunnyside — with manufacturing slated to begin in the fall.
