Height of Proposed Tasmanian Hotels Sparks Controversy

Elevator World

Welcome to the Elevator World News Podcast. This week’s news podcast is sponsored by elevatorbooks.com: http://www.elevatorbooks.com TSSA UNEXPECTEDLY RESCINDS ORDER Ontario's Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) has rescinded a sweeping three-year-old upgrade directive. According to CP 24, the industry has reacted with both surprise and anger. At issue are older single-speed elevators typically found in lower-rise buildings. In 2014, TSSA ordered all of them in the province (700-1,200) to be significantly upgraded by improving leveling accuracy to less than 1 cm. The deadline for compliance was the end of 2021. However, TSSA has announced the mandate was no longer necessary, explaining, "TSSA has continued to monitor and review incident, maintenance and inspection order data. The outcome is that the data trends do not support the mandatory upgrade of single-speed elevator-motion controls.” This TSSA letter is being mailed to owners. HEIGHT OF PROPOSED TASMANIAN HOTELS SPARKS CONTROVERSY The Fragrance Group, Singaporean developer of a pair of proposed hotels in Hobart, is getting flak from local officials concerned the structures will mar the historic character of their city, capital of the Australian island state of Tasmania, ABC News reports. The Fragrance Group has increased heights of the proposed buildings by 90 m to 120 m for a Davey Street hotel and by 21 m to 94 m for one on Collins Street. The 120-m-tall structure would have 186 m of inhabitable floors and a 24-m-tall spire. A Hobart councilman also voiced concerns about lack of infrastructure. A consultant hired by the city recommended against any new structures taller than 75 m. Hobart's current tallest building is the Wrest Point Casino at 73 m. TAMIL NADU PROPOSAL TARGETS ESCALATOR SAFETY The government of India’s Tamil Nadu state introduced a bill aimed at ensuring the safe operation of escalators on July 17, the Times of India reported. The proposal, brought forth by Electricity Minister P. Thangamani, would, upon enactment, give owners of buildings with escalators two months to obtain a license from the chief electrical inspector. After those two months, unlicensed escalators would be shut down until the license is obtained. Under terms of the proposal, the license application would include a fee not to exceed INR1,000 (US$15.52), and, once approved, the license would be valid for three years. The bill is being offered as an amendment to the Tamil Nadu Lifts Act of 1997. Image courtesy of abc.net.au: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-14/hobart-skyscraper-heights-increased-plans-reveal/8710496 Subscribe to the Podcast: iTunes?Google Play | SoundCloud?Stitcher?TuneIn