NEWS BRIEFS
come in the following year.”
However, he indicated in a follow-
up statement that the OCOT would
have funds to hire additional inspec-
tors as well as to develop training and
curriculum programs.
“Since the College only opened its
doors in April 2013, just a few short
years ago, we continue to develop and
refine operational capacity,” he said.
“Given our extensive mandate which
includes, regulating and promoting all
156 skilled trades, modernizing the
training standards and curriculum—
some of which had not been updated
in 20 years, ensuring compliance of
the compulsory trades, and protecting
the public interest, the College is build-
ing a strong foundation to govern its
members.” “Going forward, the College is ex-
pected to move towards a more bal-
anced budget.”
“The Ontario College of Trades is
committed to openness and trans-
parency and that is why our budgets
and financial statements are posted
publicly on the website,” he said.
Not surprisingly, the OCOT’s biggest
expense is for salaries and benefits,
which totaled $15,044,123 in 2015 (an
increase from $14,095,023 in 2014). Sig-
nificant sums were also spent on: Gen-
eral and administration, $2,983,987;
professional services, $602,872; trade
governance and stakeholder meetings,
$1,090,930; member communications,
$1,690,745; and amortization of capital
assets, $1,104,165.
While there have been complaints
about the OCOT’s enforcement prac-
tices for the construction industry –
part of which set off jurisdictional con-
flicts between the Labourers’ Union
and representatives of skilled certified
trades – the 2015 enforcement data in-
dicates that OCOT inspectors concen-
trated their efforts in “motive power
garages” – with 5,221 enforcement
visits. However, there were 2,834 visits
for ICI construction and 2,132 for resi-
dential construction, representing a
total of 4,966 visits, out of a total of
11,376. In 2016, regulatory and administra-
tive oversight for enforcement of trade
CONSTRUCTION ACROSS CANADA
certification and scope of work rules
was transferred to the Ministry of
Labour from the Ministry of Training,
Colleges and Universities, but the
OCOT said this would not change the
day-to-day processes.
“Out of the total field visits, around
4,200 individuals were found to be
unauthorized workers and 36 Part III
prosecutions were made,” the OCOT
said. “Nearly 1,500 calls were received
from the public about potential uncer-
tified workers under the Ontario Col-
lege of Trades and Apprenticeship Act,
2009.” Greater Toronto Area:
Province announces GO
line extensions/station
construction plans for east,
west and northern
GTA communities
The provincial government has an-
nounced plans to build new stations
and extend the GO commuter rail serv-
ice to communities east, west and
north of Toronto, but the announce-
ments – issued separately for each ex-
tension – are vague on the costs and
the exact construction implementation
schedules. In the eastern Durham region, the
government says GO Transit will ex-
tend the Lakeshore East train line by
20 km. from Oshawa to Bowmanville,
with service to start in 2024 at four
new stations.
The four stations will be built at
Thornton Rd. and Ritson Rd. in Os-
hawa, Courice Rd. in Courice and Mar-
tin Rd. in Bowmanville.
Transportation minister Steven Del
Duca said in a June announcement
that one of the biggest components of
the expansion will be the construction
of a new train bridge over Highway
20 – September 2016 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report
401 in Durham.
Meanwhile, in a separate an-
nouncement, politicians said there will
be four new GO Train stations in
Toronto’s west end, including St. Clair
West and Liberty Village on the Kitch-
ener line and Bloor St. and Lansdowne
Ave., and Spadina Ave. and Front St.
on the Barrie line.
And in a separate announcement,
the government announced it would
extend GO service to Grimsby by 2021
and Niagara Falls by 2023, with up-
grades as well to the St. Catharines
and Niagara Falls Via Rail stations.
Along with Ontario transportation
minister Steven Del Duca and Ward 19
city councillor Mike Layton, Toronto
mayor John Tory said the Liberty Vil-
lage and St. Clair West GO stations will
also run the new Smart Track electri-
fied system once the transit plan is im-
plemented. “With all day, two-way service, sta-
tions here at Liberty Village and St.
Clair West and Mount Dennis and
Bloor (SmartTrack) will provide local
service to the people of Toronto’s west
end neighbourhoods,” the mayor said.
In another announcement, the
provincial government said it would
build three new GO Train stations
along the Barrie GO Transit line as part
of Metrolinx’s GO Regional Express
Rail (RER) program - one each in the
areas of Kirby Rd. in Vaughan, Mulock
in the Town of Newmarket and Innisfil
in Simcoe County.
GO Regional Express Rail is one
way Ontario is providing faster, more
frequent and more convenient transit
service across the Greater Toronto and
Hamilton Area, and includes electrify-
ing core segments of the network by
2024. Along the Barrie line, this service
will provide travelers with access to all
day, two-way, 15-minute electrified
service between Aurora and Union
Station, including evenings and week-
ends, weekday rush 30-minute service
between Allandale Waterfront and
Union Station and 60-minute service
midday, the news release said. There
will be 180 trains per day with 15-
minute service.
The provincial news release says
the program, which is being delivered
over 10 years, will also help manage
congestion, connect people to jobs
and decrease greenhouse gas emis-
sions by reducing car trips and improv-
ing travel times.
Del Duca said in third announce-
ment that the western service exten-
sion will include a new layover facility
in Niagara Falls, more passenger trains
and 30 km. of new tracks. There will
also be a new Confederation GO sta-
tion in east-end Hamilton in 2021.
Ottawa: NCC approves
renovation design for
Government Conference
Centre The National Capital Commission
(NCC) has approved the “new look” for
the Government Conference Centre
which will temporarily house the Sen-
ate once renovations are complete in
two years.
The renovation and Senate move
have a $269 million budget. The Sen-
ate will move to the building in 2018,
as Parliament Hill’s Center Block com-
mences a decade-long renovation.
PCL Constructors Canada Ltd. has
the construction management con-
tract for the project, designed by ERA
Architects. “You’ll finally be able to appreciate
the building in all its glory,” Thierry
Montpetit, project manager with Pub-
lic Services and Procurement Canada
(PSPC), said in an interview reported
by CBC.
“We’re going to remove, what I’m
going to say (were) unfortunate alter-
ations to the building that were done
in the late seventies.”
Montpetit told CBC the goal is to fix
accessibility problems and meet the
current building code, while bringing
the building’s heritage features to the
fore. These include the great waiting
room, designed as a smaller scaled
replica of New York City’s Pennsylva-
nia Station demolished in the 1960s.
There are also functional improve-
ments including new freight and pas-
senger elevators, a loading dock, and
rooftop areas for mechanical systems.
The major project’s major impact is
on the building’s eastern side facing
the Rideau River, Montpetit said. The
current blank wall is that way because
in the earliest days there was a hotel
adjacent to what had been Ottawa’s
main train station in the former Corry
Block. With the renovations, a lot of
thought was given to how that east
façade could turn the building into a
gateway to Parliament, to join “the
town and the Crown,” Montpetit said
in the interview.
“I think that will be our biggest gift,
to really give prominence to that inter-
section,” he said. “And, giving some
stature back to that building, which
was very prominent historically and
has been a bit forgotten and lost since
the 1960s and ‘70s.”
QUEBEC Tall wood building
momentum reaches
Québec The NEB consortium (consisting of
Nordic Structures, EBC Construction
and Synchro Immobilier) have broken
ground in Québec City on the Origine
project, a 13-storey building of which
12-storeys are mass timber and one is
concrete. A news release says it will
be the tallest wood building condo in
North America.
When completed, the 92-unit con-
dominium complex will join the ranks
of the world’s tallest wood buildings
and serve as a Canadian example of
the research and technology that is in-
volved in taking wood construction to
new heights.
“Advances in science and building
technology, supported by renowned
research organizations such as FPIn-
novations and the National Research
Council, are resulting in innovative
wood solutions, such as the Origine
project, that are safe, sound, and sus-
tainable,” Etienne Lalonde, vice presi-
dent Market Development for the
Canadian Wood Council (CWC) said in
a news release.
“Tall wood buildings are no longer a
new concept, with examples of 10 and
14-storey structures recently being
constructed in Australia and Norway
respectively. Ultimately, it is about cre-
ating more options for builders and ar-
chitects in Canada and having the
science and research in place to sup-
port the tall wood option.”
The Origine project was selected as
part of an Expression of Interest (EOI)
that was launched by the CWC in April
2013, for Canadian developers, institu-
tions, organizations and design teams
willing to undertake an innovative ap-
proach to designing and building high-
rise demonstration projects. With
funding support from Natural Re-
sources Canada of $1.175 million, the
goal of this initiative was to link new
scientific advances and research with
technical expertise to showcase the
application, practicality and sustain-
ability of innovative wood based struc-
tural building solutions.
“By supporting innovation and the
use of new techniques in the construc-
tion of wood based high-rise buildings,
we are supporting the growth of a
strong and competitive forestry indus-
try,” said Jim Carr, Canada’s minister of
natural resources. “These investments
in research and development lead to
cleaner, more sustainable construction
practices, all while promoting the cre-
ation of employment opportunities in
the forestry sector. Innovative, entre-
preneurial ideas like these are integral
to our fight against climate change.”
The Canadian Design and Construction Report — September 2016 – 21