On Monday, city council will be asked to approve a 71 per cent increase to the budget for an 83-space daycare centre in College Heights.
According to a report going before city council on Monday, the budget for the project has increased from nearly $3 million to nearly $5.14 million.
The project is being fully funded by the provincial ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund on city-owned land, located at 8008 Malaspina Ave. Once completed, the centre will be operated by Kool Cats Kid Care program, run by the College Heights Community Association.
“The first phase of the project, which concluded in December of 2021, focused on the development of an RFP to secure a full team of design and construction professionals who entered into a service agreement to complete a schematic design, develop the owner’s statement of requirements, and confirm a guaranteed maximum price. The guaranteed maximum price estimate provided by the design-build team exceeded the approved funding envelope and prompted Administration to seek additional funding from the Province,” city manager Walter Babicz wrote in his report to council. “On February 17, 2022, the Ministry of Children and Family Development (administrator of the ChildcareBC New Spaces Fund) advised the City that additional funding would be provided to address cost escalations. A modified contract has since been issued by the Province that notes its agreement to pay the City a maximum of $5,135,298.58 to complete the Malaspina project.”
The provincial government announced funding for the project and a 60-space daycare centre at 677 Dagg Rd. in the Hart in June 2021. The province initially allocated $5.38 million to build both projects.
- With files from Hanna Petersen
