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1. FUNDING
RE-ALLOCATION FOR THE ARTICULATED BUS GARAGE FACILITY PROJECT réaffectation de crédits pour le projet de garage pour autobus
articulés |
That Council approve the transfer of funds as detailed in this report.
Que le Conseil approuve le transfert de fonds décrit dans le
présent rapport.
Documentation
1. Deputy City Manager’s report (Planning,
Transit and the Environment) dated 7 October 2008 (ACS2008-PTE-TRA-0011).
2. Extract of Draft Minute, 15 October
2008.
Report to/Rapport au :
Comité du transport en commun
and Council / et au Conseil
07 October 2008 / le 07 octobre 2008
Submitted by/Soumis par: Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager/Directrice municipale adjointe,
Planning, Transit and
the Environment/Urbanisme, Transport en
commun et Environnement
Contact Person/Personne ressource: Alain Mercier, Director/Directeur,
Transit Service/Services du Transport en commun
(613) 842-3636 X 2271, Alain.
Mercier@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
FUNDING
RE-ALLOCATION FOR THE ARTICULATED BUS GARAGE FACILITY PROJECT. |
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OBJET : |
réaffectation de
crédits pour le projet de garage pour autobus articulés |
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That Transit
Committee recommend that Council approve the transfer of funds as detailed in
this report.
RECOMMANDATION DU
RAPPORT
Que le Comité du transport en commun recommande que le Conseil approuve le transfert de fonds décrit dans le présent rapport.
BACKGROUND
The Delegation of Authority
By-law directs that Council approval is required when there is a requirement
for funds over the amount of $100,000 to be transferred from one capital
account to another. This report
provides information about a requirement to transfer a total of $4.7M in
capital funds to complete the new Articulated Bus Garage project.
In 2007, Council approved $60M
for the construction of a new Articulated Bus Garage Facility. This facility will provide bus maintenance
and storage facilities, as well as operations and training facilities along
with support vehicles and equipment to accommodate growth in the transit
fleet.
In an effort to reduce the
overall capital cost of the project, the project has incorporated outdoor bus
storage. It will be located at the
City-owned site at 735-755 Industrial Avenue, co-locating the new facility with
an existing City By-law and Surface Operations facility at the west end of the
property.
The facility will incorporate
such elements as:
Construction is scheduled to
commence immediately with an estimated completion date of September 2009.
The tender recently closed for the construction of the Articulated Bus Garage Facility. The prices received from the seven bidders are higher than the initial cost estimate provided by Giffels Associates Limited.
The lowest price received by the
City is $50.7M - approximately $4.7M higher than the cost estimate. This difference in price can be attributed
to recent high levels of activity in the construction industry, resulting in
rising costs. As a result, there is a
requirement to transfer funds in the amount of $4.7M from Capital account
900874 to Capital account 903780, to provide the additional funding required to
proceed with the Articulated Bus Garage project.
DISCUSSION
At the present time, the Ottawa area is experiencing high levels of activity in the construction industry. This has created a serious shortage of resources in all areas of both the consulting and construction industries, resulting in completion delays, reduced quality, and rising costs. There have recently been a number of significant price escalations in key commodities such as steel, cement, copper and most recently, petroleum-based products such as asphalt.
Prior to tendering the Articulated Bus Garage project, the City of Ottawa received a “Class A” cost estimate from Giffels Associates Limited, which provides professional engineering and architectural services. By definition, Class A cost estimates are to be within plus or minus five per cent of the tender price.
The tender closed for the Articulated Bus Garage Facility on 16 September 2008. The City received seven bids from notable local general contractors within the area. Based on current market conditions, the receipt of seven bids is considered very good.
The tendered prices were all higher than the cost estimate as a result of the rapid escalation and increased risk tolerance for contractors due to the significant changes in the construction industry as a result of fuel and petroleum based products. However, the prices are all fairly similar, demonstrating that the City received a fair price to reflect current market conditions.
The low tender was received by AECON Building at $50,796,730. The tendered prices are as follows:
· AECON building $50,796,730
· Ellis Don Corporation $51,188,325
· Thomas Fuller $51,562,350
· Bonfield Construction $51,629,000
· Vanbots Construction $52,360,920
· R.E. Hein Construction $52,509,675
· Pomerleau Inc $55,946,000
This difference in price can be attributed to:
As a result of the price
difference, there is a requirement to transfer funds in the amount of $4.7M
from Capital account 900874 to Capital account 903780, to provide the additional funding required to proceed with the
Articulated Bus Garage project.
CONSULTATION
The report deals with administrative matters and as such public consultation was not undertaken.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Subject to Council approval, funds in the amount of
$4.7M are available in capital account 900874 for the proposed transfer.
DISPOSITION
This report is forwarded for information pursuant to the Delegation of Authority By-law. Financial Services will adjust the funds as indicated in this report.
FUNDING RE-ALLOCATION FOR
THE ARTICULATED BUS GARAGE FACILITY PROJECT
réaffectation de crédits pour le projet de garage pour
autobus articulés
acs2008-pTE-TRA-0011 CITY WIDE
/ À L'ÉCHELLE DE LA VILLE
Councillor
Wilkinson noted the discrepancy in the report where it is stated that the
budget was $60M and yet the lowest bidder was listed at $50,796,730 and she
wanted to know how the other $9.3M was spent.
The Director of Transit Services explained that the tender is for the
construction of the building only and not the entire site development which
would include decontamination, site preparation, construction of the bus
storage, yard, the electrical system to plug in the buses; it is a larger
project than just the actual building construction. The councillor suggested this information would have been helpful
in the report.
Councillor Wilkinson further
wondered why the plan includes the provision of 260 new parking spots for
employees and questioned how many, according to the Zoning By-law, had to
be provided. Rob Vaillancourt, Manager,
Design and Construction with RPAM explained that the number is directly related
to the number of staff on site during a shift change. The councillor felt there must be some ability to have employees
take the bus to work (especially when working at a bus facility) and therefore
had some concern about providing this number of parking spaces.
The Chair reminded the councillor
that what is before the Committee is a reallocation of funding and that the
number of spaces had previously been approved.
He suggested that the Director respond to the councillor in writing,
with a copy to the other members of the Committee.
To respond to the concerns about the cost
differential and to provide a breakdown and rationale for the additional
funding ($4.7M), Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager, Infrastructure Services
and Community Sustainability advised that staff would provide that information
before the item rises to Council on 12 November.
That Transit Committee recommend that Council
approve the transfer of funds as detailed in this report.
CARRIED
Direction to staff
That staff
provide a breakdown and a rationale for the increase prior to the item rising
to Council on 12 November.