NEWS BRIEFS BRITISH COLUMBIA Senior Ledcor executive resigns after judge dismisses defamation suit Dwight Brissette, former senior vice president for Ledcor, has resigned from his position less than a week after a B.C. Supreme Court ruling found he inappropriately touched a Cactus Club server and called her an inappropriate nickname. The Vancouver Province newspaper reports Brissette sued the popular restaurant chain’s Coal Harbour loca- tion, a manager and server Katrina Coley for allegedly making malicious and defamatory statements about him in front of other people. The defamation suit was dismissed in June. Justice Miriam Gropper said in her judgement she believed the restaurant employees’ version of events over that of Brissette, whose memory of the events that June 24, 2013 evening may have been impaired by the quantity of alcohol he had con- sumed Ledcor announced Brissette’s res- ignation on June 27. “In response to recent events, Led- cor’s senior executives and Dwight Brissette, (senior vice president of health and safety), met today to dis- cuss Ledcor’s employee code of con- duct and senior executive expectations,” the company said. “As a result, Mr. Brissette has ten- dered his resignation, which Ledcor has accepted. Ledcor thanks Mr. Bris- sette for his years of service and con- tribution to the company.” Brissette was among a party of about 10 people, including Ledcor ex- ecutives and clients, who arrived at the restaurant around 5:30 p.m. and sat at a patio table. “Coley testified that over the course of the evening the party ordered sev- eral rounds of drinks and appetizers,” The Province reported. “She said that at one point Brissette referred to her as “Kitty Kat” and that, as she was tak- ing the order of another patron, Bris- sette placed his arm on the side of her CONSTRUCTION ACROSS CANADA back, slid it down the side of her dress and rested it on the side of her but- tocks for about a second.” The waitress reported the incident to a supervisor, and then the party was asked by the manager to settle its tab and leave. VCRA receives BBB Torch Award The Vancouver Regional Construc- tion Association (VCRA) has received the Better Business Bureau’s 2016 Torch Award for Community Excel- lence, “presented to a business that blends financial success with a strong commitment to positive community impact,” the VCRA says. The awards, held for nine years, honour B.C. busi- nesses that show excellence in the marketplace, community, business in- novation and the environment. woman Brittany Kustra. Farrell said the construction site could have better accommodated pedestrians by not closing off the en- tire sidewalk. There is “no effort to accommodate pedestrians,” she said. Sean Somers, spokesman with the city’s transportation department, said there was no other way to accommo- date pedestrians in this case, as crews are working on the building’s facade. However, he said the city has accom- modated more pedestrians by signifi- cantly reducing the number of pedestrian detours. Edmonton: Building permit decline shows scale of Alberta’s economic recession ALBERTA Graphic construction warning sign removed after Calgary city councillor objects Calgary Coun. Druh Farrell didn’t like what she saw when she observed a warning outside the Burns Building construction project in Olympic Plaza. The sign depicted a pedestrian striking a car’s windshield and read: Sidewalk closed. Use other sidewalk. Farrell said the sign and “the lack of foot access” shows disdain for pedes- trians, Metro News reported. However, Trevor Bryan, the con- struction manager at the site, said crews placed the sign because a pedestrian had been clipped by a car door mirror after not obeying the orig- inal sign, which read, “Sidewalk Closed.” “We put our own signs up this morning,” he said. “But the city said it was too graphic.” (DBD Con- struction says on its website it is work- ing on a $300,000 multi-level interior office tenant improvement project on the historic building.) The city said it ordered crews to re- move the sign due to its graphic con- tent and that it didn’t fall within guidelines, according to roads spokes- 18 – July - August 2016 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report Data from the City of Edmonton shows how severely construction has contracted in Alberta’s capital city. The city reported $213 million in total construction value for May 2016, a decline of 54 per cent from May 2015 and a 46 per cent decline from the five-year monthly average. The year-to-date figures are less daunting, showing a total construction value of $1,689 million, representing an eight per cent decline from 2015 but a five per cent increase on the year-to-date average. Contractors want to get started on Ft. McMurray reconstruction Charles Iggulden, president of the Fort McMurray Construction Associa- tion, said his group is mobilizing the 200 companies that make up its mem- bership, which together employ about 10,000 people, in a co-ordinated effort