‘Not standard practice’
Contractor dings Town for extra 600K
By Craig Westcott\April 21, 2023
As change orders go, this one was a doozy.
The $570,000 cost is so out of the ordinary, CBS Deputy Mayor and Ward 2 councillor Andrea Gosse was obliged to call attention to it at Tuesday’s public council meeting.
“In 2022, our Town completed over $20 million in capital works projects,” Gosse noted. “It was an extremely busy and successful year. Because of good Town management throughout these projects, we ended up with approximately $900,000 in net surplus funds.”
That is, it would have netted that amount, if not for the sudden appearance of a late bill from a contractor.
“I have to touch on one project that did not meet our cost expectations,” Gosse said, “which was a street upgrading and paving project. Council recently received the first and only change order for this project to the value of approximately $570,000 for extra, unforeseen work.”
The change order included extra billing for unforeseen work, unsuitable material, extra storm water upgrading on Neil’s Line and Dunns Hill Road, asphalt patching and other work.
“To receive a change order at this stage in the project’s timeline and for this value is not standard practice,” Gosse said. “It’s not the way the Town does business, and it’s not how contract work with us is undertaken. We have expressed our disappointment to the engineering consultant and the contractor. “
Gosse said change orders are a necessary part of doing business, and many times, “as in this case,” the extra work is in the Town’s best interest and gives value for many years.
“This change order that is being presented now is the result of a process error by the consultant and the contractor,” Gosse said. “The value of this change order is not a total representation of a cost overrun for the entire project. There were savings in other areas of this project, which helps offset this change order. The Town has been given assurances and written guidelines that this error in process will not occur again.”
Gosse didn’t name the consultant and contractor during her remarks. But a request to the Town confirmed the consultant was SNC Lavalin and the contractor was Dexter Construction. The project was $2.6 million.