The City of Mandurah has filed a lawsuit against two firms tasked with engineering works at the town's aquatic centre, alleging misleading conduct.
The City of Mandurah has filed a lawsuit against two firms tasked with engineering works at the town's aquatic centre, alleging misleading conduct over the structural integrity of the roof over a pool.
Filed in the Supreme Court of WA on September 2, the writ alleged Airey Taylor Pty Ltd trading as Airey Taylor Consulting, and Good Engineering Pty Ltd trading as Burdett & Goodison Structural Engineering, deceived the local government over the structural sufficiency of the roof over pool one at the Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre.
The claim against Airey Taylor stems from alleged misconduct between July 2013 and August 2015, while the claim against Burdett & Goodison stems from alleged misconduct in May 2020.
The City alleged in the writ both defendants' representations the roof was structurally sufficient resulted in the City suffering loss and damage when the roof structure failed in May 2021.
The City's legal representation, Paul Graham from Kennedy's Partnership, said the City would seek damages under Australian Consumer Law, interest on damages and costs.
The writ did not reveal the specifics of the alleged misleading conduct, but comes after the centre's 25 metre indoor pool was closed for almost three years between May 2021 and March 2024.
That closure was a result of damage caused by a storm to the roof of the facility in May 2021.
Post-storm repairs were initially estimated to cost $2.6 million in November 2021.
That figure soared to $5.7 million by October 2022, which the City blamed on industry-wide shortages of staff and increases in material costs.
A contractor for remediation works, PCB Contractors, were found in November 2022 after the City accepted its quote of $6.7 million.
