Planning Development and Building Fees By-law Adopted by City of Winnipeg Council

On October 27, 2004, City Council approved the Planning, Development and Building Fees By-law (formerly the Development Fees By-law No. 6965/97). The purpose of the restructured By-law is to guide the Planning, Property and Development Department (PP&D) in regard to fees charged for reviewing, approving, and inspecting development application to ensure compliance with the Manitoba Building Code and associated building and development by-laws for the construction and occupancy of all buildings.

As a result of this review, the new by-law requires the PP&D to move from a system of using the declared value of construction to calculate fees, to a service index methodology, and will adjust specific fee rates and add several new ones to better reflect the cost of providing services.

Using the index fee methodology, fees will be calculated based on three factors: the type of building being constructed (based on a National Building Code classification); the size of the building; and whether the construction will leave the building finished or merely a shell.

The Planning, Development and Building Fees By-law will come into effect three months after it is adopted by Council, or on February 1, 2005.

For more information, visit the City of Winnipeg web site: www.winnipeg.ca,

or go directly to the:

Planning, Development and Building Fees By-law Guide.

Builders' Night 2004

The WCA Annual Builders' Night was held this year on the evening of October 22 and was well attended by 685 guests. An exquisite four-course meal, robust entertainment by comedian Russell Peters, and the music of The Dave Lawton Society Band completed a perfect evening enjoyed by construction industry members and guests.

In addition to the above mentioned, the silent auction, raffle and door prize all contributed to another successful evening at the Convention Centre. Auctioneer Bill Knight served as emcee and also announced the winners throughout the evening in between the dancing and socializing.

WCA would like to thank the Builders' Night 2004 Presents Sponsor - AQ Financial Group; Wine Sponsor - Derksen Plumbing & Heating (1984) Ltd; Martini Sponsor - Master Roofing; Door and Raffle Prize from Western Industrial Services Ltd, as well as many other member companies who contributed to the Silent Auction. Also, a special thank you to the WCA Builders' Night Committee and Winnipeg Construction Association employees who helped to coordinate this year's fabulous event.

CCA News: Conawapa Power Project

After the initial Conawapa power deal fell through 13 years ago, assessment of the $6 billion Conawapa power project
is once again underway with an early feasibility study recommending proceeding with the Nelson River Dam. The Manitoba and Ontario governments recently launched a cost analysis study and have started discussions with
First Nations groups in the area.

The project would include construction of a high-voltage transmission line east to Ontario, with construction expected to take about eight years. The project would require 5,400 person-years of construction and would generate more than 80,000 person-years of direct and indirect jobs when completed. A final decision on development and design still needs to be made before the project can go ahead.

(Information provided by CCA News, Issue #65, November 2004, 400 -75 Albert Street, Ottawa, On  K1P 5E7,

www.cca-acc.com)

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Construction Warranties

During the past couple of years, contractors and developers have seen major changes in their building construction insurance programs. In prior years, there was rarely any problem with the placement of multi-million dollar projects at very competitive premiums. Most often as well these projects were written with very broad forms of coverage.

Every insurance buyer is well aware of the global effects on the insurance marketplace caused by 9/11. However, more industry specific and recent issues have been the cause for concern to anyone involved in construction. Several catastrophic fire losses have resulted in insurance companies being reluctant to provide coverage without adherence to loss control practices. Most specifically this has been directed toward Wood Framed Construction risks. During the last couple of years the construction industry has seen the infiltration of warranties associated primarily with this form of construction. A list of these might include:

•  Full time or after hours security

•  Hot works warranties

•  Open flame (temporary heat) warranties

•  Fence warranties

•  Access road warranties

•  Operational hydrant warranties

There are no industry standard wordings for these warranty endorsements. Each insurance company willing to write risks while under construction have developed their own version of any or all of the above list, which can lead to wide variations.

•  Security - variations can include full time watchman services or after hours security checks. The after hours security check normally requires a person, defined by the warranty endorsement, to conduct perimeter checks of the premises and buildings. The form will also mandate how often these rounds will have to be conducted (normally every hour or two hours). A record of these rounds must be maintained. The full time security service warranty requires that a firm or person, defined by the endorsement, be on site at all times during non-construction activity. Even with this full time watchman, there is usually a requirement for regular site rounds (again varies by endorsement).

•  Hot Works   - extreme variations exist in this referred to form. The requirements affected by this warranty can be how close combustible material can be located to hot works (defined in the endorsement) operations; requirements for fire extinguishers; to mandating a fire watcher be present for a stated period after any hot works operations (variations from 30 minutes to an extreme of 8 hours exist).

•  Temporary Heat - again many variations but most preclude the use of salamander type heaters. Any other form of temporary heat must follow restrictions in warranty endorsement. One item to watch is the clear space requirement needed around the heater.

•  Fence - not usually a problem.

•  Access Roads - areas of concern with this warranty endorsement include keeping roads clear of building materials and keeping roads open for access by emergency vehicles.

•  Hydrants - this warranty requires that hydrants are operational and accessible to emergency vehicles.

Obviously, to avoid any problems or issues after a loss, it is imperative that the insurance buyer have a thorough understanding of these wordings.

(WCA extends a sincere "Thank you" to John Madison of Aon Reed Stenhouse Inc for compiling the above information, www.aon.ca).

Review to "The Construction Industry Wages Act"

Recently, representatives of WCA, MHCA, CARM and CLRAM met with the Honourable Nancy Allan, Minister of Labour and Immigration for the Province of Manitoba to discuss a review process to address issues arising from The Construction Industry Wages Act (the CIWA). Since this meeting, the Minister and her colleagues have agreed to proceed with a streamlined process to review the CIWA issues at hand which include wages and hours of work.

The ministerial representatives have also requested the participation of Manitoba contractors in a joint industry/labour panel.  The committee will be chaired by Mr. Wally Fox-Decent and consist of four employer and four labour representatives. WCA has recommended two individuals be named to the review panel who will be announced once ministerial approval is accepted. The selected representatives are chosen based on their ability to ensure representation of various sectors of the industry (urban, rural, union, non-union, building construction and heavy construction). The committee will review the 1993 "Recommendations of the Construction Industry Act and Regulations" and will submit a consensus report by January 15, 2005 with recommendations respecting possible amendments to the Act and Regulations.

WCA has recommended two individuals be named to the review panel who will be announced once ministerial approval is achieved. WCA has the utmost confidence that both these individuals will serve the interests of the construction industry and the WCA will do its best to support them in the completion of this process.

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Electrician Licence Rate Increase

When electricians renew their licences for the next four year period, they will notice an overall fee increase of forty dollars. Recently, the Province of Manitoba passed a licence rate increase, the first since 1995 at which time fees increased by 100 per cent to the current rate.

Electricians' licences will expire December 31, 2004.  The next licence renewal will cover a four year period from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2008. Renewees will notice that the new rates amount to an increase of ten dollars per year.

For further information, follow the link to view the full Province of Manitoba news release.

MTS Centre Opening

the City of Winnipeg prepares

The MTS Centre will officially open November 16, 2004 with its grand opening event Northern Lights Northern Stars which includes an evening of performances from renowned Winnipeg entertainers. This and future events will create an impact on the amount of downtown human and vehicular traffic, a welcome change in the City's efforts to revitalize downtown Winnipeg.

The completion of MTS Centre also marks the reopening of the western portion of the walkway from Portage Place to the eastern portion which now goes through the new arena and reconnects with City Place and the Millennium Library, then on to Portage and Main.  The walkway now also reconnects the Somerset Building and the Radisson Hotel. 

Brock White and MGI Canada Industry Announcement

On October 15, 2004, Brock White Canada Company and

MGI Canada Incorporated jointly announced they had

reached an agreement in principle for Brock White to acquire the specialty insulation distribution business assets of MGI Canada subject to completion of a final purchase and sale agreement.

Upon completion of the transaction, Brock White will operate two sales, distribution, and manufacturing facilities in the city of Winnipeg, including their current operation on Sheppard Street. The MGI facility on Sherwin Road will be re-branded under the Brock White name. MGI's Saskatoon and Regina offices will be consolidated into existing Brock White facilities in those two locations. All key MGI employees will continue with the Brock White combined operations.

MGI's polyurethane insulation products manufacturing operation in Selkirk Manitoba is not part of the transaction. The manufacturing operation in Selkirk will continue to operate under the MGI Canada name.

Workers Compensation Board Appointments

WCA Executive Vice President Ron Hambley was recently appointed to a three year term as a Board member for The Workers Compensation Board (WCB) as an employer representative. Also recently appointed to serve as Board members for the WCB were Marla Garinger Niekamp (workers representative), Sharon Seabourne (employers representative), Brian Mayes (public interest representative), and Elaine Cowan (public interest representative).

For more information on the WCB, visit their website at:

www.wcb.mb.ca/a_309.html.)

Gold Seal Certification

Congratulations to Brent J. Geake for achieving a Gold Seal Certificate. Brent is an Estimator in the General Contracting department for PCL Constructors Canada Inc.

For further information on Gold Seal, follow this link to their website at: www.cca-acc.com/goldseal/index.htm,

or call the WCA office at 775-8664.

Remembrance Day Reminder

Most industries are required to observe Remembrance Day by remaining closed and ceasing all business activity on November 11th.  Businesses may not substitute the day off for any other day.

Retail businesses may operate on Remembrance Day but must be closed between the hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm. This applies to retail businesses that sell goods and services, trades persons or professional services, rental companies, and businesses charging admission to performances.

Employees who work on Remembrance Day must be paid 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked on the day, for not less than half the normal hours of their regular work day or receive a regular days pay if eligible.

For more information on Employment Standards, please visit their website at: www.gov.mb.ca/labour/standards.

Edited by Jackie Petrus, WCA Construction News Reporter. 

Comments or questions?  Email wca@wpgca.com.

Visit our full website at www.wpgca.com.

Copyright of Winnipeg Construction Association © 2004.

290 Burnell Street, Winnipeg, MB R3G 2A7

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