Mayor Lisa Helps voted no on the decision that set the Johnson Street Bridge Replacement Project in motion in 2012. Relatively new on council, she felt the project was being rushed and that proper due diligence was not performed to evaluate the project.

Council, she recently told the Victoria B次元官网网址, was being urged to make a quick decision. People at the political level and in the CityB次元官网网址檚 administration were sounding alarm bells that, should Victoria not move expeditiously with the project, federal funding contributions might be lost.

B次元官网网址淎s a result, we went forward with a plan that was only 30 per cent designed and where the proposalB次元官网网址檚 risk matrix seriously looked as if it had been cut and pasted from other projects,B次元官网网址� Helps recalled.

B次元官网网址淎s well, the projectB次元官网网址檚 contingency allowance was set at four per cent. It was obvious, right from the start, that wasnB次元官网网址檛 an adequate amount, but it was what was left over in the budget,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 not how a contingency should ever be determined B次元官网网址� it has to be based upon real risk assessments and a solid rationale. It was a serious mistake.B次元官网网址�

By the time the project started going sideways and cost overruns and construction delays had become the order of the day, it was too late to turn back, Helps said.

B次元官网网址淵ou get so far down a road that you simply canB次元官网网址檛 double back. The time to do that was before the contract was signed. What council needed then was someone to save us from their own mistake,B次元官网网址� she said.

B次元官网网址淛onathan (Huggett) was that saviour.B次元官网网址�

Huggett, who came in initially to evaluate what was going wrong with the project, stayed on as project manager and brought the project to a successful conclusion, albeit far behind schedule and seriously over budget.

Despite all of the missteps associated with the new Johnson Street Bridge, Helps still sees a positive side to the experience. The lessons council learned have been used to change the way the City approaches major capital projects.

B次元官网网址淲e have a new framework in place and a very strong project team so, as we head into major projects like the Crystal Pool replacement, weB次元官网网址檙e going to get it right,B次元官网网址� she said.

Every major project will be reviewed by an independent third party that will B次元官网网址渢ry to poke holesB次元官网网址� in the plan, and projects will have reasonable and firm timelines and contingencies associated with the work.

As for those who may bemoan the loss of the iconic B次元官网网址淏lue Bridge,B次元官网网址� Helps feels some sympathy but notes the City is moving forward and that the new bridge is part of a march into the future.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e planning a pretty spectacular sendoff for the old bridge, but when itB次元官网网址檚 done, weB次元官网网址檒l move on,B次元官网网址漵he said. B次元官网网址淚n time, the new bridge will become a symbol of how Victoria is entering a new era, an exciting time for an exciting city.B次元官网网址�