Children's centre still closed
Interior ceiling repairs would allow part of building to open
Shawn Giilck
Northern News Services
Thursday, April 2, 2015
INUVIK
The Children's First Centre will remain closed until at least later this month.
On behalf of the NWT United Way, Peter Clarkson presented a cheque for $2,500 to Kelly Penner, the chairperson of the Children's First Society, and society executive director Patricia Davison on March 25. The donation will go to defray expenses for the society's programs, which have been forced out of the Children First Centre due to ongoing repairs following water damage in a storm last month. - Shawn Giilck/NNSL photo
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The centre, which is owned by the town and operated by the Children's First Society, has been closed since the beginning of March following a windstorm that battered the town.
Grant Hood, the town's senior administrative officer, said the damage is still being evaluated as work begins to repair the damages. He is acting as spokesperson for the town.
"We received the engineer's report regarding the interior ceiling collapsing and as a result are taking the recommended measures to prevent it from happening again," he said. "The plan is to complete the ceiling area where there is no water damage as soon as possible after we consult with our insurance company so that that part of the centre may re-open."
It's believed the wind on the morning of March 1 contributed to the collapse of a suspended ceiling in the multi-use area near the kitchen, damaging a sprinkler and associated water pipe, and causing the flood.
Most of the water ran into the west wing of the building, where the school-age programs are offered, and toward the gymnasium.
The east wing, where the pre-school and infant programs are hosted, was largely untouched. A few days after the flood, Patricia Davison, the executive director of the society, said she was hoping that section of the building could be re-opened as soon as possible.
"We have received approval from the fire chief so far as fire protection etc.," Hood added. "As far as the area where the water damage occurred, we will do the work on that part of the ceiling as well as all the other repairs.
"A good portion of the damage was sustained underneath the crawl space due to the water freezing. This work will take a bit longer, but the centre can operate while that work is ongoing."
There is no official damage estimate made available to the public.
Kelly Penner, the chairperson of the Children First Society, which manages and operates the centre, said she hadn't been told of any official timeline for the repairs as yet.
"Repairs have been started on the building but we don't have a timeline as of yet," Penner said.
In the meantime, programs for the approximately 90 children who are enrolled at the centre are continuing to operate in various temporary locations around town, she said.
"All programs are running in temporary spaces."
The infant program is operating out of some of Aurora College's row-houses. The preschool program is at the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex, and the school-age programs are being offered out of the Interagency building on Kingmingya Road.
On March 25, the NWT United Way donated $2,500 to the centre in emergency funding. Penner said that was a welcome bit of good news because the centre is still scrambling to manage its programs.
