Commentary, Opinion

New Tecumseth council votes against additional funding to finish new admin centre

June 15, 2023   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

Not only will the new Town Administration Centre not be completed on time, but there has also been a request for $1.3 million more in funding to complete construction.

At a committee of the whole meeting on June 5, New Tecumseth councillors learned the project has already spent its contingency budget, but it will require an additional $1.3 million to finish construction.

The project will not be completed this month, as was promised in March, and the finish date has now been moved to the end of the summer.

Without additional funds, the extra money can come from a fund of about $1.45 million that was to be used for furniture, equipment and fixtures in the building. Around $315,000 has already been drawn from this fund in order to pay for some of the cost overages.

While the funds were reallocated, it was noted that it is part of the overall project budget.

According to a project status report, the project cost increased due to soil and structural integrity issues, issues with a sewer, and increased expenses for the audio-visual equipment needed for the new council chamber. These were considered unforeseen issues that were not apparent when construction started in September of 2021.

Some of the councillors expressed dismay at the current status of the project.

“I am a little troubled that what I read on this report doesn’t really reflect what I visually saw when I was in the administration centre when as a member of council we requested to see the building,” said Ward 4 councillor Alan Masters. “I was taken aback at the state of completion. It wasn’t anywhere near where I thought it would be. On the last report, it mentioned we would be complete by Q2, which is June, and here we are now, further away again, and looking, who knows, maybe August – October.”

Ward 8 councillor, Andrea Jacks, said she was concerned after touring the job site and noting the completion date didn’t seem to reflect the amount of work that still had been done on the site.

“I was taken aback by the state of completion that it was in, but wanting to also be humble in my judgment because I don’t have a construction degree or background, but I did spend two decades opening restaurants,” adding “somebody saying to me this could be of substantial completion by June, there was no way that would be a realistic statement.”

Ward 2 councillor Wendy Gabrek asked if there could be additional expenses on top of what is currently being asked for.

“As each month goes on, there could be additional expenses inccurred,” she said. “If we were to approve this is it expected additional expenses might come forward in the future?” she asked.

Town CEO Blaine Parkin responded that the “larger challenges” the project has incurred are now known and are being addressed.

A motion was proposed by Ward 3 councillor Paul Foster that council would not approve the $1.3 million “and that the current delegated authority related to the project, be restricted to the point that no additional funds can be removed from the remaining money allocated to FF&E.”

Ward 5 councillor, Marc Biss, said although he did not like the fact that the project was over budget, he did not agree with the motion, stating, “There’s no way I can support this motion – we are right near the finish line. If we don’t approve it [the additional money], then we’re just going to delay a project further and further. I hope we can go forward, get it done, and put it behind us.”

The motion to not provide the extra funding was passed by a vote of 6-4.

Readers Comments (0)