Arena awaits approval; City still hasn't OK'd site plan
Jordan Press
Local News - Friday, July 27, 2007 @ 00:00
The city doesn't know exactly when the downtown arena will open, and the opening date could be moved back even further than it already is.
The city's own planning department hasn't given final approval to the site plan for the arena. Without it, work on the site would slow when the mechanical work would take place.
That work is scheduled to happen next month.
"Obviously, the final building permit can't be issued without site plan approval," project manager Lanie Hurdle told council Tuesday night. "This could have an impact on the final building permit and, therefore, construction."
The planning department wants technical changes to the concert noise report, according to the monthly status report on the approximately $42-million project.
"The planning department indicated that most information is satisfactory, but has requested further changes to a peer-reviewed report on concert noise," the report said. "Delay in site plan approval could cause delays in construction and additional costs to the city."
Staff are doing a further study of the combined impact of the mechanical generator and concert noise on the surrounding area and extending the impact an extra 122 metre (400 feet) to see what noise levels will be like as distance increases from the source of the sounds, the report said.
Already, construction on the facility is at least a month behind schedule. A one-week strike by crane operators and a three-week strike by labourers caused the delay.
Under terms of the contract with builder EllisDon, the city can't force the company to quicken its construction pace if a strike caused the delay.
However, the company has yet to show the city a plan for how it will deal with delays related to the erection of structural steel. The report notes the city requested such a plan in May, but EllisDon hasn't been able to do a full review due to the labour disruptions. A naming-rights bid for the arena should be before council next month. Council will first see the bid package without knowing the name of the company making the bid. Only after reviewing the bid will it learn the name of the company.
The report notes consultants are in serious talks with three companies for the naming rights.
The multiplex is on schedule to be completed on time, according to the monthly progress report. However, finalizing the business plan will take longer than expected now that council has approved keeping Harold Harvey Arena open for the Church Athletic League to use.
"At this time, the impact to the business plan is unknown, but it is likely that it will result in a level of taxation," senior staff wrote in their quarterly progress report.
"The operational business plan is based on the principle that the arenas are being operated as a system, with a defined number of facilities. Given that additional facilities will be operated, additional tax support will be required."
The monthly progress report notes staff are reviewing policies to "minimize the impact on the tax base."
Project manager Barclay Mayhew said staff are looking at how much demand for ice time there still is now that the Church Athletic League won't be at the multiplex. The information will help shape the business plan for the facility, which will go to the committee level in September, Mayhew said.
"That's what we're trying to do right now because there may be significant opportunities to increase programs with some groups and then deficits aren't as great," he said.
Until the numbers are known, Mayhew said he couldn't say what if any impact there will be on the tax base.
Portions of duct work in the Grand Theatre were installed incorrectly and need to be redone, according to the monthly status report on the project.
The project is still on schedule despite the labour disruption, the report noted. An appropriate contingency fund for the project has now been set up, the report said.
The $1-million contingency fund for the new police station on Division Street won't be enough to cover extra costs, although savings should cover the shortfall. The quarterly report on the project noted the contingency fund is very low for the $37.1-million project. Extra costs will exceed the contingency by about $200,000. Savings on furniture and equipment costs for the new facility is expected to be $400,000 under budget. The money will be used to cover the extra costs.
Construction remains on schedule with a move-in date set of Sept. 15, the report noted.