The state of CEGEPs is rapidly deteriorating, to the point where a growing number of buildings are threatened with closure due to a lack of funding dedicated to their maintenance and poor management of these funds by Quebec, notes the General Auditor (VG) of Quebec in a report tabled this morning in the National Assembly.
In just three years, the Quebec college network has seen its financial needs for building maintenance double, reaching $700.5 million. Only 35% of the buildings in the Quebec college network are now considered to be in satisfactory condition, while 65% of the buildings in this network “are in poor condition”, underlines General Auditor Guylaine Leclerc in his report. CEGEPs all over Quebec are faced with leaking roofs, poorly insulated windows and mold problems, among other things.
However, despite these glaring needs, the funding intended for the maintenance and upgrading of the 899 buildings in the Quebec college network is not there, notes Mme Leclerc. “In fact, from 2023-2024 to 2027-2028, $608.6 million is planned for asset maintenance while $1.7 billion would be necessary,” she notes, at a time when the average age of this housing stock reaches 56 years.
The process put in place by Quebec to select maintenance projects submitted by CEGEPs which will be entitled to state funding is also “long and ineffective”, notes the VG, while more urgent requests are sometimes seen. refused in favor of less pressing projects. In this context, “inefficiency in the allocation of budgets for asset maintenance causes problems which can go as far as the closure of infrastructure”, underlines the report.
“The more the condition of buildings deteriorates, the greater the risk of a breakdown leading to a drop in performance or a shutdown of services. In addition, a defect that is not corrected in a timely manner risks causing others and requiring much more extensive work. For example, a leaking roof can eventually damage walls and floors. After a certain threshold of degradation, the building must sometimes be rebuilt instead of repaired,” the document continues.
More details will follow.