Thunder Bay parkades are 'safe'

In light of the collapse of a rooftop parking lot at a mall in Elliot Lake on Saturday, an official is assuring Thunder Bay residents the city's two parkades are safe.

James Coady, the manager of the Thunder Bay Parking Authority, said the Victoriaville and Waterfront District parkades undergo regular maintenance — and engineers inspect both structures every five years.

"We do localized repairs for example elevator work, roof work, localized concrete repairs within the structure, concrete repairs and stairwell repairs just to make sure the facility is safe," Coady said.

He noted that more money has been spent upgrading the 33-year-old Victoriaville parkade because it is an older structure.

"We did two complete levels of waterproofing in the Victoria Parkade which cost hundreds of thousands of dollars," Coady said.

"We’re blessed by the fact that we work in an environment where people understand the capital requirements to maintain the structure," he said. It's very important that city administration bring the proper picture forward to council. It gives them the ability to approve our capital requests because they understand why we need it and to meet the maximum life cycle of the facility."

The 33-year-old Victoriaville parkade's roof is being replaced. 

The Waterfront District parkade is 19 years old.