City council has approved over $700,000 in additional funding for two long-planned road construction projects.
For the reconstruction of Borland Street and Tecumseth Street, an additional $50,000 has been approved to meet new provincial excess soil regulations that took effect Jan. 1, requiring additional soil condition studies, assessment of past uses, and more to be completed.
With council’s approval, the total budget for the detailed design and municipal class environmental assessment has grown to $350,000.
At Monday’s council meeting, city staff said the additional studies will help avoid costly construction delays and potential repercussions when construction begins.
“Due to the new regulation, if reports cannot be completed prior to construction, delays can occur that will impact construction,” said project engineer Stephen Murphy.
“Those delays will incur large costs due to construction contractors being on standby until the reports are complete,” Murphy said. “The City of Orillia may also expose itself to increased risks due to the possibility of environmental fines if contaminated soil is unknowingly mishandled.”
Council has also approved an additional $657,000 for the Swinimer Drive and Lakehead University entrance realignment and signalization project, on top of the previously approved $480,000 for the project.
The cheapest bid for the project came in at $1,137,000 from Dufferin Construction Company. City staff recommend awarding the tender to the company, noting a continuing upward trend in construction prices and numerous traffic safety issues in the area.
Mayor Don McIsaac questioned what factors contributed to the increase in cost.
“There is a significant increase in construction costs that we're seeing throughout the industry right now,” said director of engineering Jamie Galloway. “I think that over the course of the design development, there was more road realignment for this project to be implemented than was maybe originally contemplated.”
Concerned about the project’s rise in cost, Coun. Ralph Cipolla questioned whether the project could be delayed to a later date – noting numerous roads in the city could use work.
Galloway, however, said the realignment and signalization was identified as a “priority project” in the city’s west Orillia traffic study, and that the work will help to address growing safety concerns in the area.
“There is concern of development volume coming on Swinimer and Nelle Carter Court, as well as increased enrolment at Lakehead,” he responded.
“There (have) been safety issues put forward by OPP entering on to University Avenue, so we're not recommending that it be put off – we do believe it should be done," said Galloway.
“And like I said, I think that there's not a confidence that we're going to see prices go down significantly.”
