Telus working to resolve liens issue

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By Greg Price
Taber Times
gprice@tabertimes.com

Telus is ensuring its customers and potential customers that a dispute between a contractor and subcontractor helping with the install of a fibre optic network for the community will be resolved as quickly as possible involving a subcontractor putting 82 Registration of Builder’s Liens on various properties in which work was done.

“We found about this (Tuesday) afternoon and we gathered and quickly decided we needed to ensure that we communicated to the residents in the community immediately,” said Shawn Hall, senior communications manager at Telus. “Within a couple of hours we were knocking on doors and explaining the situation to them, while our legal department at the same time was preparing the necessary legal documents to have the liens removed. In our opinion, the liens were improperly placed. This never should have happened. They are not appropriate liens.”

The liens Hall was referring to were a dispute between a contractor and subcontractor for as much as $175,000 that were from Dragster Directional Drilling with work or materials that were to be provided for Drew Communications Ltd., the company that is attached to the $9.2 million dollar investment by Telus that was announced in March to roll out a fibre optic network for the community. Taber was selected as part of a Telus pilot project which would see 90 per cent of Taber homes and businesses be eligible for the upgrade, giving residents access to the fastest internet speeds Telus offers (currently as high as 100 Mbps). Roads an alleyways in utility right of ways had to be torn up to achieve the project.

“Our lawyers are drawing up the necessary documents in court now to have these liens removed. It’s a legal process, and it takes a bit of time. Bear with us, we will do it as fast as we possibly can,” said Hall. “Our goal is to have them removed within days.”

Hall added Telus is speaking to the two parties involved in the dispute as contractors in the fibre optic project work in Drew Communications and Dragster Directional Drilling to get the issue resolved between them.

“There is a dispute between a contractor and subcontractor over payment and work, and it is important that gets resolved as well,” said Hall.

Hall ensured door-to-door campaigns will continue to make contact with affected residents to have personal conversations with affected residents.

“It’s understandable people are going to have concerns about this. I’d be concerned about this if it were me. People are leaving cards behind, so if we are not able to make that personal connection, we can at least have phone calls,” said Hall, assuring residents that as soon as the lien is removed, it will have no lingering effects on a person’s financial record. “We want to make sure they have the information they need to address these concerns that they have.”

The following statement was released on the Town of Taber web site as well: TELUS has the list of the affected 82 properties in Taber. They will be contacting these affected property owners by telephone or door-to-door. If you have not been contacted, or have not received anything in the mail, your property has not been affected, and there is no further cause for concern.

For those with affected properties, TELUS will be removing these liens within approximately five business days after contacting the property owners. TELUS will also be providing clean titles to owners as proof and confirmation of removal.

For further information, please contact:

Brett Speight
Director
Customer Solutions Delivery
Telephone: 403-341-8429
Cell: 587-876-2115

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