YORKTON — Yorkton Council approved awarding the Park Street Pumping Station Contract 2: Process Mechanical, to Interwest Mechanical Ltd. for $530,000.00 (plus applicable taxes and cash allowance), at its regular meeting May 12.
Connor Hunt, Director of Environmental Services, with the city provided Council with background on the project.
“Originally constructed in 1969, and decommissioned in 2011; the overarching objective of this project is to bring the Park Street Reservoir back online,” he explained, adding it increases potable water storage to the City's potable water system.
“This expansion is advisable in accordance with AWWA storage planning and design best practices¹ and is necessary to maintain compliance with the Water Security Agency’s Waterworks Design Standards², which require systems providing fire protection to maintain storage capacity equal to or greater than twice the average daily demand,” said Hunt.
“. . . Recommissioning the existing Park Street Reservoir represents the most economical solution to achieving regulatory storage requirements. Constructing a new potable water reservoir of similar capacity would have required a significantly greater capital investment.”
The Process Mechanical Contract was publicly tendered, with two bids received.
The tendered amount is within approximately six per cent of the City's internal pre-tender estimates and will be funded through Water and Wastewater Utility Reserves as it falls within the approved capital budget allocated for the Park Street Pumping Station Rehabilitation project.
“At the time of contract development, there were significant risks related to construction material price increases across North America. Additionally, the specialized nature of this work including reservoir structure and piping modifications and sensitive mechanical equipment installation; highlighted the need for experienced and qualified contractors,” said Hunt.
“To manage these risks, the tender incorporated a $100,000.00 cash allowance to control specialty installation scopes and to mitigate material cost volatility. This approach allowed the City to procure specified materials separately following its purchasing policy, locking in material pricing early and protecting against unknown market escalations. Contractors then bid on the installation work with known material availability, providing a more predictable and transparent cost structure for the City.”
Overall, “The Park Street Pumping Station Rehabilitation project aligns with the City of Yorkton 2020 Strategic Plan to develop a comprehensive, integrated, and sustainable infrastructure program, and to maintain public safety through proactive emergency preparedness investments,” said Hunt.
