Council will release forensic bridge audit

Vote will allow public to see redacted version of final report

Regional council reassured the public that it will get a chance to see, and judge, for itself the results of Burgoyne Bridge forensic audit.

“I think the public deserves to know what we know, without the names of course,” said Niagara Falls Coun. Selena Volpatti, who is the chair of Burgoyne Bridge audit task force.

Council approved a motion that said once the audit by Deloitte is complete, the Region will release a redacted version. The region’s legal counsel will make the final decision on what confidential information needs to be redacted.

Council began its inquiry into the debacle by ordering a value-for-money audit into how the contract for the bridge was awarded after costs ballooned by tens of millions of dollars from the original estimate.

Council then took another step and asked for the forensic audit May 19 after suspicions arose of possible “fiduciary impropriety” related to the project following an anonymous tip.

The bill for the audits is expected to be in the $450,000 range.

“The bridge is an important fixture in the Region,” Volpatti said when asked why there is so much public interest in the audit. “It’s a bridge people often see whenever they travel in or through St. Catharines.

“Then there is the fact that the cost went from almost $54 million to almost $100 million, so of course, people want to know why that happened.”

She also cautioned that the audit won’t have all the answers.

“I want to stress to people the forensic audit just covers the period up to the tender. It doesn’t cover the tendering process itself. It won’t completely answer why that price increased so much.”

Council is in possession of a preliminary report from the auditors. Earlier in the week the bridge committee’s vice-chair, Grimsby Regional Coun. Tony Quirk, said the forensic auditors from Deloitte would likely deliver the final version of the report to the committee in March, though that date could change.

The value-for-money audit on the bridge project that has already been completed was presented to council last year. It included concerns about missing documentation, poor procurement processes and a lack of transparency.

The replacement bridge, the largest the region owns and maintains, is on the same site as the original Burgoyne Bridge, which was built in 1915.

It links downtown St. Catharines to west St. Catharines over Twelve Mile Creek and Highway 406. It runs almost 320 metres with an arch of about 110 metres and is supported by 12 steel towers. Construction began in September 2015.