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Published on Jul 19, 2024 • 3 minutes reading
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A popular café in the Pacific Northwest has filed a class action lawsuit against the city, alleging that the café’s handling of a water main break in June caused both financial and physical harm.
Operators of Angels Cafe, located at the northern approaches to Edworthy Park, say the cafe was forced to close due to the loss of water supply and damage to infrastructure when the system was turned back on following the June 5 burst water main in Montgomery.
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“Angel’s Café, located near the site of the breach, suffered multiple closures and severe economic losses during critical weekends such as Father’s Day and Canada Day Weekend, traditionally busy periods for the restaurant,” according to a press release from Calgary law firm Napoli Shkolnik Canada.
“There was also physical damage to the property due to a water main break during the city’s efforts to repair Bearspaw’s water main, further compounding the financial impact.”
The city said it was forced to close parts of the riverfront trail along the north side of the Bow River, near Edworthy Park, for repair work in June.
Cathy Jacob, owner of Angels Cafe, said this disrupted and damaged her business.
At the heart of the lawsuit is the claim that the city should have been more proactive in preventing the rupture, given the failure of similar pipes in numerous other jurisdictions and in 2004 in northeast Calgary.
“This lawsuit also serves as a wake-up call to municipalities across Canada that are failing to adequately inspect, maintain and repair critical pieces of municipal infrastructure, and highlights the urgent need for stronger enforcement of safety regulations and investment in infrastructure resilience,” the plaintiff said.
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Businesses that suffered damage at the “ground zero” of the feeder main rupture at 16 Ave. and Home Rd. NW could also join the class action, said Clint Docken of Napoli Shkolnik Canada, adding that there is a preliminary claim of $10 million.
“Whether that amount is representative or not, we are trying to settle the respective damages,” said Docken, who added that the city should have taken action long before the crisis.
“It was clear to them: Quebec City and Denver had (similar) problems and there were 600 problems with this (type of) pipe.”
As of Friday afternoon, the city had not yet commented on the class action lawsuit.
Irrigation companies also say they have been unnecessarily disadvantaged by the city’s water restrictions. However, they have not yet taken legal action or sought compensation. Instead, they are focusing on restoring adequate water use as soon as possible.
Some of these businesses say that one or two hours of water use per week is not nearly enough for them. However, Gondek says the city is working closely with them and they are able to maintain their systems under the Phase 2 restrictions.
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City officials said they were stunned by the June 5 rupture. They said the 49-year-old pipe should have lasted another 100 years and that no one should be blamed for the unexpected failure.
They have previously said that there will be no compensation for companies affected by the crisis.
An independent inquiry into the rift and ways to prevent another rift that could last a year will soon be launched, but the city council has yet to decide how to appoint the panel.
Meanwhile, a day after the city relaxed water restrictions to allow Calgary residents to use sprinklers and garden hoses on lawns and gardens one hour per week, Mayor Jyoti Gondek said the city is on track to further relax the measures on Monday, allowing residents two hours of such use per week.
“The team predicts that if everything continues to go smoothly and as expected, there may be a move to Phase 1 restrictions early next week,” she said Friday morning.
“We are being very careful not to overload the system at this important time in our recovery.”
She said water usage peaked at 629 million litres on Thursday – the first day of Stage 2 restrictions – up from 530-580 million litres earlier in the week.
680 million liters of consumption is normal for a hot day in July without restrictions, Gondek added.
This comes as the ongoing hot weather, which has prompted a heat warning, is set to continue for another week, with temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius.
X (Twitter) @BillKaufmannjrn
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