To ward off any potential lawsuits for a breach of contract, Westlock County will complete repairs at the Pine Valley Resort in Tawatinaw.
On Aug. 8, councillors voted unanimously to accept a report on the ski hill’s 2017 projects, which assured the status quo would continue at the hill — at least until the Oct. 16 municipal election and plebiscite.
As part of the county’s operator’s agreement with DK Consulting, the county is obligated to complete construction on the ski chalet, including landscaping, outdoor decks, driveway access and parking lot for 80 stalls; replace four existing single wall fuel tanks with a double wall fuel tank; and resolve the surface and waste water issues.
The county must also repair erosion issues on the ski hill’s half-pipe; repair or replace the waterline and hydrants for the snow-making equipment; and furnish the snow-making equipment’s generator.
All of those projects must be completed by Nov. 1.
Chief Administrative Officer Leo Ludwig noted that most of the items are budgeted for, however the county is working with tight purse strings and that would make completing all the projects within budget a challenge.
Coun. Bud Massey said he was concerned by that and wondered how much more money would be taken out from the budget to address that.
Ludwig replied that those are unknowns due to the age of the site.
“Any time you start digging up old infrastructure, you run into surprises and that’s why that language was used,” Ludwig said. “One never knows once you start. Just like when you’re renovating an old building, once you start your project, you often run into things you didn’t expect. That could happen in this case as well.”
Massey also asked if the county had sought a legal opinion regarding the consequences of not completing some of those projects, if council disagreed with spending the money.
Ludwig said administration hadn’t because removing those projects off the to-do list could put the county at risk of a lawsuit for breaching the contract with DK Consulting.
“The covenants of the county in the contract are clear,” he noted. “So if we consciously breach the contract, the other party would be in a position to take the county to task for that reason. That’s pretty black and white under contract law.”
