Paradise scrubs boathouse addition

Mark Squibb / July 28, 2023

The Town of Paradise will not be moving forward with plans for an additional safety boat storage area for the new community boathouse, and has opted instead to store the boat within the boathouse, despite all parties involved agreeing that an additional building would be the better idea.

Back in December of 2022, the Town hired All North Consultants Ltd. to design the new community boat house, which is being built in partnership with the Avalon Dragons, at a cost of $211,589.

The initial request for proposals required the design-consultant to include an area to store the safety boat, a Zodiac with an outboard engine.

“It was assumed that the safety boat would be stored in the main boathouse, but the RFP did not explicitly state so,” explained councillor Larry Vaters. “During pre-design consultations it was determined that the safety boat should be housed separately. This was agreed upon by all parties as the best path forward, and the program was finalized to reflect this.”

All North submitted a proposal to undertake the design of a separate storage building at a cost of $13,000, plus HST, to cover the cost of additional working hours, but council says that cost is simply too high.

“While the committee acknowledges there is some additional effort required for the second building, we are of the opinion that $13,000, plus HST, seems excessive,” said Vaters.

Councillor Glen Carew agreed with Vaters’ assessment, and argued the storage area for the boathouse would have been included in the original RFP, and thus didn’t agree with paying additional funds on top of the original contract.

Council voted unanimously to reject the offer without any further discussion.

Vaters noted the design of the boathouse, which is to be situated on Octagon Pond at 1717 Topsail Road, is progressing well.

“The design of the boathouse building is about 66 percent complete and the conceptual design for the new slipway and wharf arrangement is under development,” he said. “An updated cost estimate is being developed and will be submitted to the recreation and community services committee when received for the 2024 budget deliberations.”

Talk of a boathouse has been ongoing for a number of years and ramped up when the Town purchased land off Octagon Pond and partnered with the Dragons to make the dream a reality.

Lacking a boathouse, the Dragons have been storing their boats in shipping containers.

The requested $13,000 is roughly six percent of the original contract, awarded at $211,589.