(OTTAWA) After years of dithering, the National Capital Commission (NCC) has begun the process of “decommissioning” 24 Sussex Drive, the Prime Minister’s official residence in disrepair.
The process was initiated this week; work is underway “relocating residence staff and preparing the main building for upcoming removal and decommissioning work,” the NCC said in a statement on Thursday.
This announcement does not seal the fate of the building: the required works, such as the removal of asbestos and electrical and heating systems which should begin in the spring of 2023, are “necessary” and must be carried out “irrespective of any future decision about residence,” the NCC said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau backed out of moving with his family to 24 Sussex after taking office in October 2015. Problems with the official residence were well known then, having been the subject of several reports over the years.
The alarm bells were actually sounded more than 10 years ago by the former Auditor General of Canada, Sheila Fraser. In a report it published in 2008, it estimated the cost of the repair at nearly 10 million.
The bill has obviously continued to swell since; the NCC recently estimated it at 37 million. And that’s not to mention that hundreds of thousands of dollars had to be allocated each year to ensure the safety of the heritage residence.
“As materials and systems continue to age and deteriorate, it becomes necessary to take more aggressive action to address significant issues that create risks such as potential fire hazards, water or poor air quality,” the NCC said Thursday.
Access to the premises will be closed to facilitate the planning of this work in the coming weeks.
Last January, Prime Minister Trudeau reiterated that he did not see himself leaving his suitcases and those of his family in the house he had lived in as a child.
“The current residence in which I and my family find ourselves [Rideau Cottage] is quite adequate. I have no intention of living at 24 Sussex, regardless of the length of my tenure or terms as prime minister,” he said, quoted by the daily. The right.