By Robert Washburn
Any effort to move the Waterfront Festival midway off of the east pier would create problems for Cobourg Rotary Club, the president said yesterday.
Cobourg Rotary Club President Bill MacDonald said concerns over the safety of the East Pier raised by Councillor John Henderson Monday night came as a surprise.
“It would be very difficult,” he said.
The town staff and members of the Rotary Club’s Waterfront Festival Committee are working to resolve safety issues caused by holes underneath the east pier called voids. The problem has existed for a number of years and repairs take place annually.
Town engineer Barry Thrasher said the pier was studied and a safety plan is in place. The Rotary plans to use huge steel plates to help distribute the weight of the midway rides near voids. Thrasher says this reduces any hazards to an acceptable level.
MacDonald is also convinced the plans will work.
“There should not be any problems,” he said.
Henderson hopes to have a report from town staff before council to assess the safety and liability issues before the Waterfront Festival takes place starting on June 27. If not, he hopes council will not allow the midway on the east pier, but relocate it elsewhere.