City fires water plant contractor

By Brent Bosker

paNOW Staff

Construction at the city’s water treatment plant has ground to a halt after the city fired the contractor.

Wildstone Construction was hired in March 2011 to complete more than $13 million dollars of upgrades at the facility. The major focus of the company’s contract was to install a new clarifier which was completed in the spring, but City Manager Robert Cotterill said construction stopped at the plant last month after the Penticton based company was removed from the site for reasons he couldn’t disclose.

“We’re currently in a dispute with the contractor, so I can’t comment other than that, said Cotterill adding the process will play out in the courts over the next year.

“Anytime you have to step in and make the decisions that we have made, it’s difficult. We’re now in a legal process and we have to let the legal process do its course.”

It is unclear yet if terminating the contractor will have a financial impact on the city.

“We will let the courts decide,” said Cotterill.

The city did have a bond on the project which is like an insurance policy if one party fails to meet some obligation, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract.

With the contractor now gone, Cotterill said the focus is getting another company going to replace two thirds of the plant’s roof, which had to be removed during the installation of the clarifier.

“We’ve covered up a lot of that equipment, but we’re certainly concerned that we don’t want to go into a winter season with that equipment not fully covered.”

The work should begin shortly after city council on Monday unanimously awarded the tender to J.L. Depeel Roofing Contracting of Prince Albert.

The $313,383 contract includes the 769 square meters roof replacement as well as the ceiling and wall painting in the clarifier room.

For more details on the contract, click here.

bbosker@panow.com

Twitter: @brentbosker