Council has waived requirements of the township’s purchasing policy in order to proceed in a timely fashion with work on municipal bridges.
Council agreed to proceed with most of the bridge work outlined in quotes provided by Reeves Construction Limited for $611,562 plus HST with the addition of $8,500 (plus HST) for additional slope protection for a structure on Concession 14 and a $65,000 contingency allowance.
Staff were also directed at the July 8 meeting to approve a $1-million debenture to cover the cost of the 2014 bridge work and street light upgrades throughout the township.
The decision came after recently-hired public works director Brad McRoberts had a chance to review a bridge repair report deferred by council on June 24. McRoberts also consulted with the township’s engineers and Reeves Construction officials.
Based on his review, McRoberts recommended on July 8 proceeding as proposed at the June 24 meeting.
However, he noted consideration could be given to closure of a bridge on Sideroad 17, a seasonal road with no winter maintenance, as an alternative to replacement of the structure. The savings from the closure would be $140,000.
The issue of proceeding with the work based on a quote from one company was raised at the June 24 meeting. Councillor Mike Downey, who was absent from that meeting, raised the question again on July 8.
“I have an issue with disregarding our purchasing policy,” said Downey
“It might be the only way we can do it this year,” said Mayor Bruce Whale.
“I think in retrospect we would have asked Reeves to come back and not give us quotes,” said councillor Andy Knetsch. “Frankly I think we shouldn’t have done that. Hindsight’s always 20/20, but that’s where we’re at.”
“If we’re challenged by another company for not making it public, can we defend this?” asked Downey.
“I don’t know legally whether we can defend it or not and I’m not going to try and make a legal argument,” responded Whale.
“I believe that council has the authority to waive any of its policies. That’s not to say we wouldn’t get some feedback on it. It’s not the ideal way to go,” said CAO Patty Sinnamon.
“That’s kind of my point,” said Downey.
Councillor Neil Driscoll said council felt it needed additional input beyond a bridge and culvert assessment done by the engineering firm of R.J. Burnside for the township.
“We looked at the bridge report from Burnside and thought we should be getting another opinion,” said Driscoll.
He asked what the annual cost of the $1-million debenture would be. Sinnamon said it would be $151,000.
Council passed a motion to forgo the work on Sideroad 17 for the time being. However, no decision was made on closing the bridge.
A resolution waiving the procurement policy and authorizing staff to proceed with the rest of the bridge work as outlined in the Reeves report was also passed.
