On two separate occasions in October of 2017, shards of glass rained down from the Brookfield Place Tower to the street and sidewalk below prompting officials to close roads and access to several businesses. Now, one of the business owners is attempting to recoup their losses and others are contemplating legal action as well.
In the late morning hours of Saturday, October 15, a window was smashed by a window washing basket on the 23rd floor of the building at the intersection of 6 Avenue and 1 Street Southwest. The area was closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic and several businesses were temporarily closed including Breslauer & Warren Jewellers.
The owner of Breslauer & Warren Jewellers, Breslauer Holdings Ltd., has filed a civil lawsuit against Brookfield Place seeking $100,907.99 in losses caused by the temporary closures and the reduced foot traffic and reduced visibility in the area, and other business owners in The Lougheed Centre building are considering following suit.
Kenny Kaechele, the chef and owner of Workshop Kitchen + Culture, says the entrance to his restaurant directly across 1 Street from Brookfield Place has been enveloped by protective scaffolding for months and he has been disappointed with the lack of communication from the tower’s owners.
“I haven’t heard from Brookfield at any point in this whole process,” said Kaechele. “Not when the glass fell, or when they were doing the follow-up, or when they were putting the scaffolding up or as a courtesy to know how long the scaffolding would be up.”
“We've just had to deal with it. As a business, it is a challenge on top of all the regular challenges of operating.”
The sidewalk and one lane of traffic along 1 Street remain closed more than four months after the first shards of glass fell from Brookfield Place.
Brookfield has not responded to CTV’s interview requests. The City of Calgary continues to await a final report on the incidents.
With files from CTV's Brad MacLeod
