Conceptual Drawing of the Centre to be built in the Campbellford’s business park

Shortfall in Funding of About $2.8 million

Construction of the facility is expected to be completed by the winter of 2023/2024.

Article by John Campbell

Trent Hills - Fri., Nov. 25, 2022 - TaskForce Engineering Inc. has been authorized to proceed with construction of the Campbellford Recreation and Wellness Centre, even as the Municipality of Trent Hills faces a funding shortfall of roughly $2.8 million.

That’s because the total cost of the project is now pegged at $22.7 million while the sources of funding currently lined up to pay for it add up to $19.9 million.

“Market forces have greatly impacted the price of construction materials and as a result the total cost of the project exceeds the original cost estimate of $17,000,000 obtained pre-COVID in 2019,” Chief Administrative Officer Lynn Phillips told council in a report she prepared for its Nov. 22 meeting.

The original financing plan for the building’s construction included taking out a $8.5 million loan to cover the municipality’s share of the project’s costs. The federal and provincial governments are contributing $7.6 million through an Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program culture and recreation grant, and the Campbellford-Seymour Community Foundation is contributing $1.5 million.

Phillips said the municipality will dip into three reserve funds to increase its contribution to the project to $10.8 million, or 47.5 per cent of the total project.

Even so, close to $2.8 million still needs to be found to pay for the 64,000-square-foot multi-use facility, which will include an ice pad, lane pool, therapy pool and fitness centre.

“The unfunded portion of the project does pose a financial risk” to the municipality, she warned. If additional outside sources of funding are not found before the end of construction, the municipality will be responsible for the additional cost.

But “there is no ability to incur any further debt than the planned $8.5 million,” she explained, because the municipality has committed “to limit the impact to taxation for financing to $550,000 per year.”

That money is invested in the redevelopment of recreation facilities. It was used to pay off the loan to build the Hastings Field House and it will be used to renovate the Warkworth arena, after which the money will go toward paying off the loan for the rec and wellness centre.

“Staff will continue to seek out additional sources of funding from the upper levels of government or other possible funding partners to fully fund the project,” Phillips wrote. Trent Hills “has raised the issue of COVID-19 construction pricing and the impact it is has had on the total cost of this project with the Provincial Minister of Infrastructure in the hopes of developing a solution and securing additional funds.”

When asked at this week’s council meeting about the time frame for securing the required financing, Phillips said there’s roughly a two-year window before the facility is completed. It will “mostly involve seeking out additional funds from upper levels of government but it is possible it could come from a combination of sources,” she said. “Most likely we still have to explore some additional fundraising, perhaps more internal financing. We’ll have to look at all those options.”

TaskForce is “very close” to completing its design of the centre and is ready to proceed to the second phase, construction, Phillips said.
“The project’s been delayed for six months already,” Community Recreation Officer Peter Burnett said, and “the longer we wait” to make a decision, “it’s that much more uncertain” what the final price tag could be for the centre, as the cost of things, such as steel, is “quite volatile.”

Mayor Bob Crate said both MPP David Piccini and MP Philip Lawrence have been “very supportive” of Trent Hills getting extra funding.

Councillor Daniel Giddings asked if there were a plan in place for “scope creep” which could increase the project’s cost.
Burnett said the municipality has done its “due diligence” to prevent that from happening, “and the contractor is well aware of the urgency to keep this project on budget …We’ve been very clear from the very beginning of the design process that we need to be as frugal as possible without compromising the quality of the building.”
“It’s our hope that through this process that we’re able to keep everything within budget, and we’re dedicated to working towards that.”

Deputy Mayor Mike Metcalf said council might need to “shuffle” certain funds in the municipal budget to help eliminate the shortfall.

The centre has been in the works for more than 15 years and having “come this far we can’t give up federal and provincial dollars that have come our way because it doesn’t happen very often,” he said.

“Let’s get her done,” Councillor Dennis Savery said. “The money will come, I’m confident. If it’s not from the government, it’ll be us as a whole … The community wants it.”

Although Giddings was in favour of going ahead, he said he was “very concerned” about starting construction in the winter and the possibility of scope creep, and he wanted his warning to go on record that “this may not be our final price.”

Crate said he suspects “we will be getting close to warm weather before we start sticking shovels in the ground seriously.”

Council voted to approve the financing plan submitted by Phillips and to authorize TaskForce Engineering, of Belleville, to proceed with construction at the proposed price of $20,502,900.

The other project’s costs are $1,145,800 for the design, $864,065 for site preparation, and $217,765 for project management.

Construction of the facility is expected to be completed by the winter of 2023/2024.

To keep track of its progress, visit www.trenthills.ca/wellnesscentre.