Senior staff must be held to account

Dear editor:

The multi-sports facility in West Kelowna has not “hit a snag.” It has exposed the shortcomings of three senior city staff and the developer involved at the very least.

It is now up to the newly-elected mayor and council to demonstrate their abilities to manage city projects and funds.

Performance reviews for these employees are required. A complete review of the procedures and processes by which this project was to be undertaken are necessary to ensure a fiasco of this proportion doesn't happen again.

The fact that it is Doug Findlater who has cautioned against “budget creep” is worthy of ridicule. It was under his watch that this project “crept” from $1 to $3.8 million in the first place, all the while failing to meet B.C. building code requirements.

When performance at lower levels do not meet expectations, senior management is held accountable. For this pending report to be of any value, it must identify both accountability for this mess and the way forward for this facility.

The time and money invested so far has to be turned into a successful project, and grant money from the province not lost to the people of this city. A facility half the size of the original design is not a successful solution.

The mayor and council have to step up and show that they are worthy of the confidence placed in them.

Marilyn Whitburn West Kelowna