A report to Moose Jaw City Council on Tuesday night showed that the city’s 16th Avenue feeder main replacement project is coming in significantly over budget. 

The tender for the project closed on April 20 with two pre-qualified contractor bids. The committed construction budget minus consulting fees was $4.5 million, while the lowest bid total minus GST was $6.6 million.  

With this comparison, it puts the project $2.1 million, or 47.5 per cent, over budget. 

The tender award evaluation compared the unit rates to those from the 2023 cast iron water main project, which closed on Feb. 28. Director of Engineering Services Bevan Harlton explained why they saw an increase in costs. 

“I would put this 90 per cent or the greater percent on labour. We saw that cast iron closed in February. This one closed in April. That's a seven-week difference, and it's a considerable cost increase,” he said. 

The report noted that scope reductions would by deferred from Phase 1 of the project to Phase 2, so any cost savings would just be deferred to the second phase. 

The engineering department has notified the consultants and bidders that the Phase 1 tender will not be awarded. A phase 2 package will be finalized by consultants by July. 

Harlton explained what the next steps will be. 

“Our next steps for 16th Avenue, again, is to get that design done, finish our in-house design and have, prior to the budget, an idea of what these two projects will cost prioritizing the Coteau feeder main, 16th Avenue feeder main and our commitment to cast iron,” he said. 

The scope of Phase 1 of the project is being reviewed by the city to see if portions of the work can be completed during the 2023 construction season.