The Taipei City Government and subcontractors have been shifting blame and are unwilling to help restaurants and other businesses at Taipei Expo Park that have been affected by severe rain, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Liu Tsai-wei (柳采葳) said yesterday.
Liu said that she received complaints from restaurant and store owners at the site in Zhongshan District (中山) saying their stores had flooded in June, were affected by a leak on Aug. 10 and had water seeping through walls on Sunday.
The owners had spoken to the Taipei Expo Foundation, which manages the park, but it told them it had subcontractors to maintain buildings in the park, Liu said.
Photo courtesy of Taipei City Councilor Liu Tsai-wei
The subcontractors blamed poor construction, and when the owners turned to the Taipei City Government, they were ignored, she said.
The city government should not indulge the subcontractors in such a manner, Liu said.
The foundation had allotted 24 percent, or NT$18.3 million (US$572,985), of its budget for repairs and maintenance in its fiscal 2022 budget, but the owners have been left to deal with water issues, she said.
The restaurants and stores represent the city, and they serve more than 3 million people per year, she said.
The foundation’s finances showed that it was NT$2 million in deficit, she said.
The foundation said that MAJI Square had flooding in a storm on June 30, which was the first time.
It has ordered electric pumps, which arrived yesterday, and flood protection barriers, it said.
The foundation said it was increasing its maintenance budget in fiscal 2023 by NT$2.4 million, adding that it has already negotiated with restaurants regarding compensation.
It said its deficit was primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic, during which it signed shorter lease terms with some stores and closed one of its pavilions to facilitate construction of a second art museum.
However, revenue at the Expo Park from January to July was more than NT$10 million, it added.
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