The costs for the Sechelt landfill remediation project have gone up once again, as the work to compact sinkholes discovered at the site required a partial redesign of the new drop-off station and new soil was required.
At the Aug. 17 Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) special board meeting, general manager of infrastructure services Remko Rosenboom said the scale building also needed to be replaced with a three-year-old used unit, after a rodent infestation was discovered at the existing building. The chief building inspector concluded renovating would be more costly and risky than replacing the building.
The design change also pushes the completion date into late August, rather than late July, which triggers the extensions of two contracts. This results in an additional contract increase for Summit Earthworks Inc. of $214,723 for the drop-off remediation project. The contract with XCG Consulting Ltd. was also increased from $128,157 to $163,157 (not including taxes) for construction oversight of the scale building. The Sechelt Landfill drop-off remediation project budget was increased by $254,723. The board also authorized borrowing $1,462,390 from the Municipal Finance Authority for the project.
Rosenboom told directors a significant amount of the contingency had already been allocated, and added he does not anticipate further cost increases.
In other landfill news at the meeting, the SCRD board also awarded the contract for engineering consulting services for the SCRD landfill and transfer station to XCG Consulting Ltd. for up to $211,880. The proposal is within the approved budget. The company has previously held the contract for this work with the SCRD, but that contract expired at the end of July.
Sechelt Aquatic Centre
After the discovery of leaks and microbiological growth in the Sechelt Aquatic Centre’s fire sprinkler system at the end of 2020, no bids were received for the fire alarm and temporary linear heat detection system the board approved in June.
Instead, the SCRD is negotiating with Sasco Contractors Ltd. for a cost not to exceed $154,000. Shelley Gagnon, general manager of community services, said the timing of the installation is critical. Authority was requested, and granted, so the work could begin immediately after negotiations.
Firefighter equipment
New equipment has been purchased for the Roberts Creek Volunteer Fire Department.
The current self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) was at the end of its 20-year life cycle, manager of protective services Matt Treit told the board, and had to be replaced. The new equipment also required the department to upgrade the filling station, since the new SCBA uses a higher pressure.
The board approved Electrogas Monitors as the lowest of five bids received.
Since there were still funds available in the budget, the department also purchased 20 voice amplifiers for better communication, as well as 10 spectral kits for firefighters who usually wear glasses. Since the SCBA can’t accommodate glasses, the spectral kits will ensure the firefighters have proper vision while operating with the equipment on.
While the SCRD board usually does not meet in August, the special board meeting was scheduled to award timely project and contract bids.
