Crime - Missing children found

Joanne Mangell surrenders to authorities in Rhode Island

By Pamela Roth
Staff Reporter

A Calgary father’s wish to see his two children who disappeared with their mother last month has finally come true.
After nearly a month of not hearing from his son Joshua, 5, and daughter Hailey, 8, Rob Mangell was reunited with his children Monday morning in the Eastern United States.
In the midst of a custody battle, Mangell’s ex-wife Joanne allegedly fled High River with the two children.
In relation to two charges of parental child abduction, a Canada-wide arrest warrant was issued for Joanne, who turned herself over to police in Providence, Rhode Island on Sunday and currently remains in custody.
For Mangell, the news was what he had been praying for.
“I am extremely happy to see them,” said the 30-year-old, who was still in the U.S. with his children. “I was starting to be doubtful. I did not think I was going to see them again for a long time.”
The two children had been staying with their mother and her boyfriend in a High River home when they disappeared in mid-July.
Previously to their disappearance, Mangell had served his ex-wife papers seeking full custody of the children due to concerns he had with her new boyfriend.
When the children went missing, the couple had only a verbal agreement to split their time with their children.
As the weeks passed with no word from Joanne, except for one phone call to her mother the day before she left, friends and family grew concerned she could have taken them to Guatemala, her boyfriend’s home country, or to the United States, where he also has family.
High River RCMP alerted border agencies and major airports of the incident in an effort to prevent the foursome from leaving Canada.
Despite those efforts, it’s believed the family entered the U.S. illegally by walking through the woods in a forested area near Montreal.
“We were told they were in good health and good spirits, so that’s great to hear,” said High River RCMP Cst. Rita Jones. “It’s a huge sense of relief that she turned herself in and the kids are back with their father. You couldn’t really ask for a better outcome.”
Deportation hearings are scheduled to take place within the next seven to 10 days to determine when and if Joanne will be escorted back to Calgary to deal with her charges.

Goin’ with the flow

Justin Purchase, 4, of Calgary plays in a shallow on the Sheep River near Lion’s Park in Okotoks on Sunday afternoon. The Sheep River is recording low levels due to below normal rainfall.
photo by John Barlow

Community - Repair bill for arts centre tabbed at $1 million

By Laurel Nadon
Staff reporter

An architect’s preliminary estimate stated repairs to the Rotary Performing Arts Centre could surpass $1 million.
On July 17, the centre was shut down due to public safety concerns with a new roof, foundation and exterior wall realignment needed. Church, drama and other groups were forced to find new homes.
Council, at its previous meeting, had requested that administration provide cost estimates required to bring the Rotary Performing Arts Centre up to today’s building codes and construction standards.
Rob Young, a partner with Quinn Young Architects, presented a report to council at its meeting on Monday. He cautioned that more research needs to be done into cost estimates and that $1 million is just his best guess.
“Basically what you’ve got is a progressive failure that’s happened over the last 60 years,” Young said, adding that the trusses were inadequate to begin with and the brickwork is bowing out up to four inches.
“At any time, that could kick out and you’ll end up with a spray of bricks out onto the lawn. It could go tomorrow or three years from now.”
The cost for a building and structural analysis would be approximately $20,000. To stabilize the building would cost between $100,000 and $200,000. The price for a contractor to remove just the bell tower would cost $18,000, which has left the town considering doing this in-house.
To resolve immediate public safety concerns, Young suggested erecting temporary shoring to stabilize the roof structure and prevent the possibility of continued progressive failure and collapse. Temporary shoring will permit worker access for remedial work to begin and is intended as a short-term solution with no public use permitted.
To resume public use, the town would need to:
• install cross ties on three trusses and repair truss wall connections to prevent further deflection and possible failure.
• undertake a detailed structural assessment of existing trusses, wall farming (framing??) details and conditions, including detailed load calculations and connection design.
• inspect condition of exterior wall — truss connections, brick ties to assess integrity of existing walls. This requires the opening up and repairing of sections of wall and eaves by a contractor.
• remove the bell tower and reframe the existing roof gable.
Public use of the facility can then resume, but the building will continue to degrade due to the condition of the building envelope and foundations.
Phased repairs to fix the building over the long-term include a detailed architectural and structural assessment of the complete building envelope with any problems repaired. This includes replacing the roof membrane, all flashing, repointing the brick, ensuring the adequacy of masonry ties and underpinning or replacing foundations. The interior also needs to be refinished where the plaster has cracked and the mechanical system life and efficiency needs to be assessed and repaired, upgraded or replaced as required.
Young recommends that the town retain a construction manager to undertake stabilization and phased repairs. The town also needs to develop a detailed strategy of repairs and budget to determine the viability of restoration versus demolition.
Councillor Laurie Cherkowski asked about the lifespan expected for the building if the town were to move ahead with repairs.
“We’re talking about bringing it back to a valuable asset,” Young said, adding that the lifespan would be another 15 to 20 years.
Councillor Ralph Wilson said that he still feels that the building is going to be a bottomless money pit.
“I personally am not in favour of that (approving repairs),” Wilson said. “I think it’s wasted taxpayer’s money and we could use the money to build a much better performing arts centre instead of wasting it on the old one which is in danger of falling down.”
He said that council seems to be sidestepping the important question.
“If you owned that building and were looking at a million plus in renovations, what would you do with it?” Wilson asked. “Would you bulldoze it or fix it?”
Young said that there are a number of issues that need to be considered, such as parking. He said that parking is a problem at the site and that if a new building were to be built in the same location, parking would have to be addressed.
“If the building has a significant historical value to the town as a landmark and sentimental value to users, then that has to be weighed,” Young said. “Is it an economically sound decision to renovate a building if it doesn’t have any of those factors? No, not at all. It’s cheaper to build.”
He added that if the stabilization is done, then users can still use the building during the renovation, noting that the renovations can be done over a couple of years.
Mayor Bill McAlpine said he wasn’t surprised by the presentation.
“I think it has great historic value if we can just find the way to do it,” McAlpine said, adding that he supports moving ahead with receiving cost estimates to repair the building.
Council will discuss the issue further at a September meeting and decide if they want to go ahead with a building and structural analysis. If council decides to look further into costs to repair the building, then a series of stakeholder meetings will be planned to determine the future of the facility and its intended use.