The city will spend $690,000 a year to run the waterfront until private development comes in.
City community services manager Greg Alexander walked council through a financial breakdown of the cost Monday night for the waterfront’s interim management plan. There will be $231,400 worth of personnel costs for five full-time equivalent positions to keep the buildings and programming running. Another $226,500 will be used for purchased services, which includes everything from energy to janitorial services. An additional $207,200 will be spent on rents such as event security and materials for equipment, lighting and water features .
Then there is the $90,000 the city will need to pay for the former CN Station until private development comes in. Alexander said $65,000 in revenue is expected from solar panels, concession leases and vending machines.
“This time next year I hope to have a lot more information for you about what works,” Alexander told council.
Coun. Andrew Foulds said he has been getting calls that the city has been neglecting other recreation areas because of the waterfront. Alexander said that’s not the case.
“That’s absolutely not true,” Alexander said.
Coun. Linda Rydholm said members of the public had been asking her why they saw parks employees congregating at the waterfront for two weeks. But Alexander said staff was on site to be trained on new equipment at the waterfront not working there.
“We did have a lot of staff down there learning how that system works,” he said.
Alexander said the interim plan will be in place until private development comes in. But council learned that will be an estimated two year construction period once development actually begins.
Council approved a single source contract to Manshield for $3.2 million to finish up Phase One of the waterfront construction Monday. But that work won’t begin until private development is finished. While the city usually has a tendering process for contracts like the one awarded to Manshield, in this case it was recommended it be given to the company because they are already doing work down there and will be involved in the private development.
The contract will finish streetscaping, signage footing, calls stations, security cameras, paving on Pearl and Sleeping Giant Parkway, market parking, a traffic circle and other work. Unlike competitive tendering, this contract is fixed cost.
