More funds sought to cover St. James Civic Centre construction costs

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This article was published 12/04/2023 (1146 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The price to revamp the St. James Civic Centre is rising again.

A new City of Winnipeg staff report seeks council permission to transfer extra funds from other capital projects to help cover $687,000 of added costs.

Most of the cost hike is blamed on an unintended release of silica dust during construction, which the city previously reported.

The public service report says no additional tax dollars are required to cover the cost hike, which is partly offset by damage payments linked to the alleged construction errors.

Built in 1967, the St. James Civic Centre closed for construction for more than two years before reopening in September 2022. The facility includes an indoor arena, swimming pool, auditorium, weight room, multi-purpose classroom and other spaces. It was originally expected to reopen in June 2021.

The city has blamed the delays in finishing the project on alleged contractor errors that allowed silica dust to be released throughout the facility twice, creating a “workplace health and safety hazard” that forced work to stop.

If the changes are approved, the official budget for the civic centre renewal will rise to about $10.5 million.

An overrun of $1.3 million for the project was previously approved and covered through project contingency funds. That money helped renew building systems deemed to be “past their rated useful life,” the report says.