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City working on replacing Etobicoke man's homemade stairs at park 1

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How do you get from $500 to $150k?

1) ADA. If there's no way a wheel chair is getting down that there is no way the City can have anything to do with it.
2) Liability. If someone slips and falls on a muddy hillside after climbing over a guard rail to get there, the City is probably OK. If someone slips and falls on stairs, the City may not be OK.
3) Permanence. Those stairs look like they will last maybe 10 years, probably less before, the stairs are loose from the stringers. Near the end of that life, see Step 2.
4) The Guard Rail. I presume it is there to serve some function and is probably to avoid a problem with Step 2, even if there was no muddy hillside, someone decided it was needed to prevent a Liability claim.

Near to me is a Convention Center and a nearby Hotel. Between them is a flood ditch with levee walls to keep any floodwater in it. It makes about a 6 foot rise from the general elevation on each side. Across the ditch and walls is a bridge with concrete stairs. Neither the Convention Center nor the Hotel claim it. As far as they are concerned it just appeared out of nowhere. It's concrete and about 30 feet long. Because it doesn't belong to either party in some clear way there is no ADA problem and no Liability problem. It's fairly permanent, so that's nice, and it doesn't circumvent any safety barrier. For the conventions I attend and which basically rent both facilities, the convention hires a driver to make the lengthy detour that is required to go between the buildings for those with mobility problems, who would otherwise have a quarter mile excursion that this bridge cuts to about 600 feet. If either party did claim it, they would be on the hook to provide local transport.

That 200 feet claim is garbage. He knows that's each way, so it's a 400 foot detour. I doubt the Mayor would like to park his car 200 feet from his house every day.
 
How do you get from $500 to $150k?

Just look into article: "We’re looking at options and were going to have a solution in the near future"

Committee of highly skilled professionals "exploring options" for a few months and you won't have anything left for materials and labor.

"For every expert there is an equal and opposite expert"
Arthur C. Clarke Profiles of the future

 
They should just charge a ridiculous fee like they do if they have to airlift you out of the grand canyon.


I am ok with the steps if they get tore down or that they were shoddy. He won just by pointing out how ridiculous their estimate was. There are probably a lot of plush jobs like this that are going to friends of whoever is in charge.
 
The news article didn't show a complete picture. It's got some pretty serious trip hazards.
Additionally,
> no actual access at top, so parking lot railing needs to be re-done
> parking spot needs to be removed
> unclear what kind wood he used, but it doesn't look like it's treated at all
> posts are simply pounded into the ground, so termite and water damage potential
> his stringers are too close together; after about a year or so of use and rain, the treads will wobble

stairs.JPG


TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! faq731-376 forum1529 Entire Forum list
 
I tried estimating the concrete for a fully ADA ramp, et al. 10 grand in materials was well above what I could scrape up.

I forgot the main reason for a high estimate: "We don't want to do this."
 
3DDave,
The article said this is for a shortcut into the park. There must be other gentler acccess points. Surely you don't need a ramp at every stair.
 
Is it an idea to install a rope from down to top so people can just climb? It does not look like a very steep slope. As provision for when its rainy, maybe pave the way with solid blocks (like rocks)... [2thumbsup]

 
Looking at the original story, a rope is what was there in the first place - doesn't say whether the sixtyish year old who broke her hand was using it.

A.
 
hokie66,

There's a shortcut around the Mississippi as well, but the I-70 bridge is more convenient than going through Canada.

Anyway, I'm going out on a limb to say if people are willing to try a steep muddy hill hanging onto a rope, that the route must be so preferred over the gentler approach that including ADA (though this is Canada, so who knows what the specific rules are) suitable accommodations would be a nice thing to do.

I think I found the parking lot. I don't clearly see the shortcut, but I see a garden that shows up in many other pictures. The item of interest is where all the cars are parked - none are near the paved path. Most are near the garden.
tom_riley_park_dalrsu.png


(On the map it's Tom Riley Park at the intersection of Bloor St. W and Aberfoyle Crescent.)

The problem isn't getting into the park, the problem is they have a compelling attraction that has poor access.

There seem to be other compelling attractions in these parks that are cause for concern. Dopey dogs
 
Maybe if there were a demand for a ramp, the city would listen. But I doubt many people in a wheelchair would want to participate in the community garden. The users of the garden seem to be happy now, so that is what matters.
 
Somewhat in line with 3DDave's notes, I had been involved in government funded projects for things at a prior employer. The additional cost to ensure that every dollar is accounted for, not disappearing into the pockets of unscrupulous mid-level contractors, plus the additional fees to inspect the works at what is more than the normal number of inspections is surprisingly large.

I'm not saying that the apparent disparity in costs here is appropriate, but there is certainly a cost in government works, and it is often far higher than what average joe expects it to be.

IRStuff is also correct, it appears to be exactly what it is, a simple stairwell constructed by a homeowner without consideration as to durability or usage requirements.

EDMS Australia
 
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