YORKTON - After sending a plan for upgrades to the Kinsmen Arena back to city administration to look for cost savings before accepting a tender for the work, Yorkton Council finally approved the project as it was presented without finding cuts they deemed worth making.
It was at the July 8 meeting that council was initially presented with the bid results for the Kinsmen Arena Ice Systems Upgrades project. They directed administration to “proceed with issuing an ‘Intent to Award’ Notice to PCL Construction for the Kinsmen Arena Ice Systems Upgrades Project and further that Administration and PCL Construction explore options to reduce the scope of work resulting in lower project budget and report back to council,” explained Taylor Morrison, Director of Recreation & Community Services, at the July 29 council meeting.
Included in council’s July 8 directive was a request for a breakdown of the PST in relation to goods and materials, and project labour.
Although the contractor does not track these items separately, PCL has estimated that 35 per cent of total PST ($77,771.00) is related to labour costs. The remaining 65 per cent ($144,433.00) is related to materials and supplies. For the purpose of this report, all budget numbers include the PST, and exclude the GST, explained Morrison.
As for possible cost savings they proved rather limited.
Following the July 8 meeting, the city’s project team, representatives from Alton Tangedal Architect, who are the project consultants, and project personnel from PCL Construction met to begin reviewing options to reduce the scope of work and overall project budget, explained Morrison. The primary focus was on cosmetic items, including sandblasting and painting, blue room rubber flooring, protective netting, and ceiling patching and arena sound system.
“Further investigation into refrigeration system adjustments, electrical and mechanical revisions, and potential changes to the dehumidification system was completed however substantial cost savings were unable to be identified,” he said.
Ultimately, “the total potential cost savings identified amounts to $130,232.66, including the PST,” said Morrison.
“If all of these identified items were removed from the project, this would bring the proposed budget down to $3,795,383.00, including PST, which is a three per cent reduction from the original bid from PCL Construction.”
The bid received from PCL Construction was identified as best value, as it was the lowest bid received.
Regarding the project insurance, PCL’s internal insurance has been quoted at $34,980.00, compared to the city’s current broker which has quoted coverage at $40,815.30, said Morrison, adding it is recommended that the project proceed with insurance through PCL’s internal insurance team, pending submission of the insurance coverage and policy wording, saving an additional $5,835.30.
Morrison said the savings were mainly possible in the finishing details of the project.
“While just over $130,000 in savings has been identified, most of the items are cosmetic in nature, and do not impact the overall ability to provide good quality ice,” noted a report circulated to council. “Rather, they are the things that user groups, spectators, and the general public will pick up on quickly. There are improvements being made to the rink boards and glass, which are also visual changes that will be noticed right away, but fresh paint on the beams, an upgraded to the sound system, and new safety netting will also go a long way to show the commitment to the continued operation of the Kinsmen Arena. These items will eventually need to be addressed, either through future operating budgets or as separate capital items, so including them in the overall Kinsmen project now will save on future costs, down times, and potential impact to operations.”
To provide a revised scope of work for this project, including all identified project changes and savings outlined above, the existing budget of $3,500,000 would still need to be revised to $4,373,400.
In terms of source funding Morrison said it would not greatly change things if the cuts were made.
“As the Deer Park Clubhouse, Westland Arena Ice System, and Kinsmen Arena Ice System projects are internally funded by the Recreation Levy over the next several years, an increase to the Kinsmen Arena project will prolong the use of the Recreation Levy to pay off all three projects,” he said.
“Including all identified project changes and savings will still require the Recreation Levy be allocated through 2030, becoming available for the 2031 budget cycle.”
The annual Recreation Levy amounts to approximately $1.15 million dollars.
Overall the project fits with a broader city vision.
Completing the Kinsmen Arena Ice System Upgrades project is supported by the Infrastructure and Community Development goals of the Official Community Plan, explained Morrison. The project is further supported by Yorkton Kinsmen Arena Facility and Assessment Feasibility Study (2019), and the Parks & Recreation Master Plan (2023) which identified upgrades to the facility as essential to the continued use and support of ice programming within the community.
In the end administration recommended Council direct it to proceed with the Kinsmen Arena Ice Systems Upgrades project, as originally tendered, with a project budget of $4,516,157.52, including PST, to be funded by the Recreation Levy, and award the tender for the project to PCL Construction Management Inc. for a cost of $3,925,615.66, including PST and excluding GST, and further authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute the contract, which Council unanimously passed.
