For the second time in a little more than three years, the City of Langford has revoked the occupancy permit for an apartment building at 2770 Claude Rd. because it was deemed unsafe.
But did things go so wrong – again?
Centurion Property Associates bought the building – then called Danbrook One with the address listed as 2666 Claude Rd. – in 2019 and a few months later the permit was revoked. The company rebranded the building and said it was completing a “structural systems upgrade.”
“We have been working with appropriate engineers, consultants and relevant municipal authorities to ensure remediation of the structural systems. As we work toward the occupancy permit, we look forward to providing safe and comfortable homes to all our residents,” Centurion president and CEO Greg Romundt said in a March 2022 press release.
The next month, the City of Langford re-approved the building’s occupancy permit and residents started moving back into the building in May.
But now those residents have been told to leave their homes after the city revoked the building’s occupancy permit on Monday (April 24) because the building was again deemed unsafe.
MARCH 2022: ‘Structural systems upgrade’ nearing completion on Langford highrise, owner says
APRIL 2023: Residents told to leave after troubled Langford high rise deemed ‘unsafe’
The approval of permits relies on the Professional Reliance Model, a system that relies on applicants, whether they be developers or business owners, to get qualified people to ensure any building plans are safe and up to standard.
The practise is commonplace across a number of industries in B.C. In 2018, the province conducted a review of the model when it comes to decisions about natural resources projects after failures of the system came under scrutiny. The review produced 121 recommendations for accountability, including addressing understaffing in key government oversight departments.
Speaking during a press conference on Monday, Langford Mayor Scott Goodmanson said he could not speak to why Centurion had not ensured a proper review of the building was done, but said not doing so displayed “serious negligence.”
“Municipalities across B.C. rely on the Professional Reliance Model in approving occupancy permits,” Goodmanson said. “If the city had the information that we have today, the city would never have issued the occupancy permit for April 2022.”
“When they submit authenticated plans or schedules based on that Professional Reliance Model, we have to believe that those plans are up to date and meet the latest building code requirements. That is how it works across B.C. – 99 per cent of the municipalities don’t have the resources on hand to do that all themselves.”
Goodmanson could not speak to if there were any other buildings in Langford that may have similar issues, or indeed the extent of the issues with RidgeView. He also could not speak to if the building was at risk in the event of an earthquake.
He added that while the immediate priority was assisting displaced residents, he expects the city would review its policies in the future, but emphasized the situation is evolving.
The decision came after the city received a letter from Engineers and Geoscientists BC, a provincial regulator, on April 17. The regulator had been investigating the structural engineer of record for the remediation work undertaken by Centurion.
“The letter provides details of a variety of potential structural design issues that may not have been addressed by the original remediation and concluded that EGBC ‘has received no evidence that a comprehensive review of the structural design of the Building, or of the as-built structure of the Building, was ever conducted for the Remediation.’”
On April 20, the city told Centurion it needed to tell residents and have an EGBC-certified engineer conduct a review to determine whether the building was safe. On April 23, Centurion notified the city that a third-party engineering firm had completed an initial visual inspection of the building and concluded that the structure is “unsafe” and, in the interest of public safety, “strongly recommend the evacuation of the building until a more detailed analysis can be conducted,” said the city.
“As a result, the city made the decision to revoke the occupancy permit and instructed Centurion to notify residents immediately,” said the city.
An EGBC spokesperson confirmed an investigation was ongoing into the building, but said they couldn’t comment further.
“This particular case is unusual because investigations are almost always strictly confidential, and disclosure of even their existence would be seen as a breach of privacy. In this case, there was a public interest in disclosing this information to the City, as a failure to do so could potentially bring harm to residents in the building and the general public. It was the City that revealed their source of information as EGBC, and we are simply confirming that as it is now in the public domain,” Mykle Ludvigsen, associate communications director for EGBC wrote in an email.
READ MORE: Engineer behind Langford’s troubled Danbrook One building stripped of licence
READ MORE: Second engineer loses licence over troubled Langford apartment building
Centurion Apartment Properties bought the 90-suite building in August 2019 and said previously it was unaware of any structural issues. After the City of Langford revoked the occupancy permit in December 2019, the company said it was blindsided.
The engineer involved with constructing the building was found to have made a “critical error in judgment” in believing he had the required knowledge and experience to design a building such as Danbrook One, in a subsequent investigation by EGBC.
The two engineers involved with the building’s initial construction had their licenses with EGBC cancelled.
“The city informed the building owner that they will be required to do a full and comprehensive, independent structure design review of the building before any new occupancy permit will be considered,” said Goodmanson, although when asked, he emphasized the city is not currently considering or reviewing the permit.
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bailey.moreton@goldstreamgazette.com
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