A pair of projects have been given the green light by Prince George City Council.
The first project approved by Council tonight was a sound system renewal for the CN Centre.
The budget for the project would be $950,000, lower than originally expected.
“To put it mildly, its at the end of its life, it far past the end of its life,” said Director of Civic Facilities and Events Andy Beesley.
“This is not an unexpected expense, in fact it has been in an unfunded capital plan, over a million dollars.”
Beesley noted due to the pandemic, they’ve been able to delay replacing the sound system, which was first implemented in the 90’s, due to the pandemic, but part of the system is already failing, and a large-scale failure is imminent.
“There are no access to spare parts or replacement pieces at this time,” he continued.
“I remember my family got our first family cellphone in the 90’s and it was the size of a modern day microwave,” said Councillor Cori Ramsay.
“Just thinking that that’s the equipment we’re using in the CN Centre for events is slightly comical to me, because I think if in our households we had modern day technology, we wouldn’t have that expectation from the 90’s given the amount of technology.”
Beesely noted the system they want is designed for the CN Centre.
“It’s far from the best money can buy, but we think for the average fan going, it’ll be a very nice system that people will be very happy with.”
Council approved the sound system replacement unanimously.
The other project, the replacement of the City Hall transformer, comes with a price tag of $1.2 million.
“The City Hall transformer dates back to 1965, and it is at the end of its life,” Beesley said.
“The original scope for $310,000 was essentially just to replace it status quo, but since then and after these consultations [with BC Hydro and other partners] we think this is a news story, because the new budget and scope takes into consideration not just City Hall needs, but also future developments including civic core planning and potential new facilities in the area.”
He said the upfront costs are higher, but it will result in big savings down the road.
The project was also approved unanimously.
Other items discussed tonight included tree thinning in urban areas.
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