WESTLOCK – The west industrial stormwater project, originally tabbed with a $4.9 million price tag, has come in $500,000 cheaper.
Included as part of the municipality’s 2021-26 capital budget unanimously passed by council Feb. 8, the project’s projected costs in that document was $3.274 million in 2021 and $1.634 million in 2022. Viewing the current capital budget document uploaded on the town’s website, the figures have changed — $3.575 million is slated to be spent on the project this year and $893,860 in 2022. In total, the town expects to spend $13.6 million on projects this year, versus the $13.3 million in the original capital budget document passed last month.
CAO Simone Wiley said the scope of the project hasn’t changed as they were able to get a better deal on the work after it went out for tender. Funding for the project came from the Alberta Community Resiliency Program and the Federal Investing in Canada Plan.
“That reflects the actual tender that came in, the values. There would have been a budget before, an engineering estimate. So these numbers shown now are actual tender values with engineering,” Wiley explained.
“I think there are always some unknowns when looking at projects like this and we had put in a bigger number based on the previous tender a couple of years ago and we were able to make some changes — material changes, a couple of process changes which saved us some money out of that tender value.
“Anytime we can save money and still get the originally intended project, that’s the goal.”
The Town of Westlock hopes the west industrial stormwater project will protect residents and business from another 100-year flood like the one in August 2016 that caused millions of dollars in damages across the community.
The job, which started at the beginning of the month, includes construction of a naturalized stormwater management pond — a project the town says will incorporate existing wetland areas into the design and provides natural plantings around the pond's perimeter to accommodate wildlife. In a release the town notes that the project will improve runoff quality by providing a site for suspended solids' settlement and removing contaminants from the watercourse. Additionally, this pond will provide a buffer to the downstream residents by easing the flows moving through the outlet of the Wabash Creek.
As well, the existing 3.6-kilometre main drainage channel, which has degraded over time, will see its structural and natural capacities increased to adapt for climate impacts, disasters, and extreme weather events, like the 2016 flood. The culvert crossings at 96th Avenue and 113A Street and 96th Avenue and 108th Street will be upgraded as well as the drainage channel along the west side of 96th Avenue.
