Council awards contract for arena floor, board replacement

Posted on: February 20, 2018February 20, 2018 Staff Writer

By Rob Vogt, Local Press Writer

Claresholm town council has awarded a contract for almost $710,000 to replace the floor and boards at the Claresholm Arena.

At its Feb. 12 meeting, council reviewed a report from administration outlining the bids.

A bid by Western Recreation Limited was the lowest at $682,276, but did not include sand and quoted a five-inch concrete slab instead of the six-inch slab included in the other tenders.

The next lowest bid was Bry Sand Ice Arena Limited, with a quote of $709,706.

The other three bids ranged from $751,220 to $1,016,615.

The town has budgeted $780,721, so the bid is still below budgeted.

The funding for the project, which is outlined in the town’s 2018 draft capital budget, comes from:

<li>Town of Claresholm, with reserves of $154,135;</li>
<li>Community Facility Enhancement Program grant funds of $405,786;</li>
<li>Municipal District of Willow Creek with $144,000;</li>
<li>Claresholm Minor Hockey Association, through their own and fundraising, $76,800.</li>

It was stated in the report from administration, some of the Community Facility Enhancement Program matching funds are also to be provided in the form of in-kind donated equipment and labour from the town, local businesses, and Claresholm Minor Hockey Association. The $780,721 is also to cover contingencies outside the tender contract to complete the project.

The Community Facility Enhancement Program grant funds have not yet been awarded therefore these funds are not guaranteed.

Claresholm Minor Hockey Association has been in contact with the granting body and despite the website stating grant notifications will be in February, they don’t anticipate notifications going out until early March.

This is a high priority project in order to ensure there is a working ice arena for the 2018-2019 season as it is starting to fail. Based on the size of the project and the required start time of the project to ensure completion prior to the start of the 2018-2019 season, the project will need to be awarded prior to early March when the grant notice is received. Starting the project prior to grant notification or awarding does not affect the eligibility of the project for the grant. Only work done prior to the grant application being submitted is ineligible.

If unsuccessful in the grant application, Claresholm Minor Hockey Association is committed to doing additional fundraising and is in the process already of applying for a Co-op Community Spaces Grant for $150,000. There is also available Municipal Sustainability Initiative funding to cover any shortfall if needed.

Council then agreed to award the contract for the arena floor and boards project to Bry Sand Ice Arena Ltd. for $709,706 plus GST.