Bank-Somerset intersection should reopen next week: city

A downtown Ottawa intersection that has been closed for three weeks after a building partially collapsed should reopen early next week, the city's manager of inspections said.

Peter Black said a contractor hired by the owner of Somerset House, the building that partly collapsed on Oct. 19 at the corner of Bank and Somerset Streets, has been doing the work listed by engineers as necessary to stabilize it.

"I would expect that they'll be working through Friday and through the weekend," he said Thursday.

The intersection can be reopened once the building isn't at risk of further collapse.

"Based on the time frames that we've been given on site by the contractor, we're looking at maybe Tuesday, Wednesday," Black added.

Arlene Gregoire, the city's director of building code and services, told CBC's Ottawa Morning on Friday that the work was delayed somewhat because a worker had been trapped in the building after the initial incident and stabilization work couldn't begin until the Ministry of Labour gave the go-ahead this past Monday afternoon.

She added that the citycouldn't intervene with its own workers to speed things up, as had been suggested earlier by local Coun. Diane Holmes, because that type of action can only be taken in emergency situations. In addition, she said,a court must validate the assessment that it is an emergency.

Holmes had estimatedthe closurecost the city $300,000 in policing during the first two weeks, and she said city staff should be more proactive in reopening it. Meanwhile, local business owners have complained the closure has driven away their customers.