Collingwood staff confirmed the contractor has extended the bid offer for the Collingwood water treatment plant expansion for a few more days to Jan. 25.
The town requested this second extension while it deals with the fallout of the costs of the plant rising to nearly $300 million from estimates in 2022 for half that amount.
Three bids delivered in September started at $212-million and went up from there. Kenaidan was the lowest bidder and the town has been working with them to keep the bid on the table. Originally, the bid expired in November.
The total costs for the project are now predicted in the $270-million range, which was a shock for not only Collingwood, but also New Tecumseth, a major partner in the project since their drinking water supply comes from Collingwood.
Since receiving the bids, Collingwood and the other municipalities involved (Clearview and The Blue Mountains also get some drinking water from Collingwood) have been trying to come up with a plan to cover the increased cost and make due with the current plan for longer since the completion date estimated for 2026 is now pushed to August 2029.
Most recently, Collingwood council say through a three-hour closed session on Jan. 15, emerging to vote on a couple of motions including a request to Kenadian to extend the deadline for the bid from Jan. 16 to later, and make an official request of the other three municipalities to find out how much drinking water they'll need from the new plant.
Council also agreed on an undisclosed budget to pay Hemson Consulting Group to finalize a development charge bylaw for the water treatment plant, which could include advanced charges to help cover the costs of the plant expansion. AECOM will be tasked with reviewing the potential for increasing the capacity at the current plant through rehabilitation in order to meet the drinking water needs of Collingwood for the next eight-or-so years.
“Everyone has proceeded in good faith, but we’ve been left with the unprecedented increases in construction costs for infrastructure that have thwarted our efforts to be able to accept (Kenaidan’s) bid thus far,” said Mayor Yvonne Hamlin on Monday night.
Collingwood, New Tecumseth, Clearview and the Town of the Blue Mountains have been working together with some local developers on a task force charged with finding funding solutions, which includes lobbying the provincial and federal governments for assistance with the costs of the new plant.
At a joint council meeting between all four municipalities on Jan. 11, Collingwood’s chief administrative officer, Sonya Skinner, noted that so far, efforts to gain federal and provincial funding for the project have been unsuccessful.
Council is also pushing the province for help funding the expansion.
Hamlin noted there is an upcoming meeting planned between the Town of Collingwood and the minister of infrastructure at the 2024 ROMA (Rural Ontario Municipal Association) conference.
“I think it would be appropriate that I re-confirm to the province through the minister... that we’re looking to the province to partner in this expansion because of the unanticipated costs,” said Hamlin.
“This kind of project only makes sense now with provincial backing, so I’ll be doing my best. I know every council member will be,” she said.
- With files from Jessica Owen
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