A woman who brought her great-aunt to the Hub in St. John’s yesterday to cast a special ballot in the federal election says she was shocked by the condition of the building.

The caller on VOCM Open Line says the wheelchair accessible ramps were in “deplorable condition” and she says the general state of the building was so bad she’s surprised it’s not condemned.

Executive Director of the Hub, Tom Badcock admits the emergency exit ramp is in poor shape, and signs are in place to indicate the appropriate entrance.

“That’s our emergency ramp,” says Badcock, “and if the person had just proceeded 10 feet past, they would have seen the main entrance and taken the elevator up to vote. There were lots of signs,” but he’s since posted another sign saying “Emergency Exit Only.”

The Open Line caller also referenced a sewer smell and water dripping from the ceilings. Badcock says their hot water boiler had burst at that very time, an issue that has since been addressed.

He says the boiler was replaced yesterday. “It’s just a comedy of errors,” says Badcock. He says they have another nagging leak around the door which they’re trying to address, and the ice machine got jammed which also caused a leak. “When you have a building this size, there’s always a problem.”