Work stalls on costly repairs to vandalised piazza lift
‘‘We appreciate that delays are frustrating, but it is important that the finished project is modern, fit-forpurpose and up to standard.’’
Susannah Ratahi
A two-month project to repair the 2019 vandalism damage to the lift at Timaru’s piazza has reached five months with no end of sight.
Vandals broke into the lift’s plant room in March 2019, damaging an electrical circuit board panel, the hydraulic electrical system and a door mechanism at the base of the lift. They also dumped a large amount of diesel into the piazza fountain.
Repair work began in May and was expected to take two months but the Timaru District Council’s land transport manager Susannah Ratahi said there had been ‘‘some unexpected challenges in the Covid-19 environment’’.
‘‘We are still waiting to hear back from Schindler (Schindler Lifts, the contractor) with an update on sourcing parts. A number of things have caused this delay.
‘‘The Covid-19 lockdown stalled work on the repairs, however, it was clear prior to the lockdown that the project to modernise the lift was more complex than initially thought.
‘‘We are unable to commit to a completion date at this point in time nor will we be able to provide comment on the length of the delay.
‘‘We appreciate that delays are frustrating, but it is important that the finished project is modern, fit-for-purpose and up to standard,’’ Ratahi said.
New safety and security enhancements such as lighting, CCTV cameras, and an alarm system were included in the repairs, the council’s infrastructure manager, Andrew Dixon, said when work began in May.
‘‘These investments in security will hopefully put people off vandalising the lift in future, and make it easier to identify people if they do.’’
The council estimated the total cost of damage to be approximately $87,900, most of which was covered by insurance.