Durham Region forced to hire auditor general after million-dollar-door exposed

Victory? Just days after Rebel News exposed Durham Region’s $1 million revolving door (!), the municipality says it will hire an auditor general.

Well, that was fast!

You may recall our report a few days ago about a certain piece of grotesquely overpriced infrastructure at Durham Region’s headquarters in Whitby, Ont.

That’s where you can find a $1 million revolving door. Yes, the installation of a single revolving door cost taxpayers seven figures! We’re not making this up, although we wish we were.

In Whitby, we interviewed City of Pickering Councilor Lisa Robinson. (Pickering is situated in Durham Region.) Like most people who appreciate the value of a taxpayer-sourced buck, Robinson is equal parts dumbfounded and disgusted that $1 million somehow, some way got squandered on a simple revolving door.

For its part, Durham Region issued a statement justifying the pricey door: “We are required to ensure Regional facilities are safe and in good working order for staff and visitors. The building’s existing sliding door system was reaching the end of its 20-year life expectancy. The doors were a constant source of energy loss during extreme temperatures and presented health and safety concerns in a high-traffic area.

“With $403,000 in funding from the federal Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program, the Region reallocated $249,000 in funds from an existing capital maintenance project and matched with $249,000 in additional financing to replace the entire sliding door system using a transparent request for proposals process. The new system, including two accessible swing doors, HVAC and security features, was installed in 2024 to reduce operating costs and improve energy efficiency, traffic flow and security.”

Anybody buying that?

As well, who cares what level of government is funding this door – there’s only one taxpayer!

But get this: maybe Durham Region has seen the folly of its ways when it comes to spending like a drunken sailor on extended shore leave.

That’s because a few days after our report was published, Durham Region announced that it is going to hire an auditor general by 2027. The idea was approved in a 21-6 vote in council.

Whitby Regional Councillor Chris Leahy argued that the position could include from eight to 12 new staff members and cost between $1.6 million and $2.1 million annually. But he said ultimately an auditor general would find savings for taxpayers.

Our suggestion to the incoming auditor general? How about the Region of Durham attempt to recover the cost of its infamous revolving door by marketing it as a tourist attraction. Invite people the world over to visit Durham Region HQ to see this gizmo and then charge visitors a loonie to “ride” the door.

After all, surely there are thousands of people who would be fascinated by a piece of preposterous infrastructure that costs more than a brand-new Lamborghini Revuelto off the lot. After all, a $1 million revolving door doesn’t belong at a municipal building – it belongs on display as an exhibit at Ripley’s Believe It or Not!

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David Menzies

Journalist and 'Mission Specialist'

David “The Menzoid” Menzies is the Rebel News "Mission Specialist." The Menzoid is equal parts outrageous and irreverent as he dares to ask the type of questions those in the Media Party would rather not ponder.

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