Thunder Bay City Council - Acadia Broadcasting File

City council has delayed receiving an update on the Indoor Turf Facility Concept until June.

Council was set to hear the results of the preliminary design studies, including geotechnical and environmental, a recommended project delivery model, a review of the operating business models for an OBC compliant and a City Design Standard facility, and public engagement results.

Council would use that information to decide on the next steps regarding a competitive procurement process.

At a November council meeting, council approved an upset limit of $38,033,400 for the Soccer Northwest Ontario  Indoor Turf Facility concept not including site development/ancillary work.

More costs appear to be incoming, bringing the final cost above the upset limit.

The final geotechnical investigation report for the facility recommends a drilled cast-in-place concrete pile foundation due to a layer of soft silt found within a portion of the facility’s footprint. This is a change from the previous shallow foundation that was recommended. A high-level estimate for this deep foundation above the costs included in previous estimates is $600,000.

In addition, the environmental testing has determined that there are contaminated soils within the building footprint that will need to be brought to the landfill which will also add cost to the project.

These additional costs will bring the estimated facility cost over the $38M upset limit for the facility that council approved in November, but still within the financing strategy for up to $44.6M that was approved.

Administration requested to have the report back date extended as the change in the foundation recommendation and soil impacts to the facility estimate need to be quantified and considered.

Council is set to resume discussion on the topic on June 3.