$650,000 arena renovation contract up for debate in Ontario city

The City of Pickering is set to approve a major renovation of O’Brien Arena in the Chestnut Hill Developments Recreation Complex, with staff recommending awarding a contract valued at nearly $650,000 to CS&P Architects.

The total bill for the project is pegged at more than $924,000 before HST rebates and will be debated at a special council meeting Thursday afternoon in the council chambers.

The O’Brien Arena, originally constructed in 1992, requires renewal of certain components that are at end-of-life, including a renovation of the arena and related spaces, a renewal of facility systems, a roof and wall cladding replacement and replacements and upgrades to the existing arena controls.

Eight companies submitted proposals when the request went out in April, with an evaluation committee comprised of staff from Community Services reviewing and evaluating the proposals

The top-ranked proposal submitted by Toronto-based CS&P Architects Inc. in the amount of $584,102.40 (net HST) or $648,620 (HST included), is recommended for approval by the committee. The total gross project cost is $924,204 (HST included), and the total net project comes in at $832,274 (net HST).

Other costs in the project include testing and inspection costs during the design phase ($85,000), permits and approvals ($90,000) and a contingency fund ($68,880).

Staff has recommended funding for the project come from casino reserves ($760,000), facilities reserve ($320,000) and the Canada Community Building Reserve Fund ($60,000).

The city is also expected to include an additional $307,726 in a just-in-case overage fund.

The O’Brien Arena was as an addition to the original portion of the Chestnut Hill Developments Recreation Complex that was completed in 1983. The staff report declares it requires major renovations to the arena, meeting rooms, exterior patio, dressing rooms, coaches’ rooms, referee room, kitchen, snack bar, washroom, vestibules, arena entrance lobby and related areas.

Facility systems to be “investigated and considered for renewal” include flooring, curtain wall, meeting room folding partitions, arena dasher board system, doors, paint, interior and exterior lighting, sound systems, information technology, fire alarm, security, automatic door openers, heating ventilation and air conditioning systems, refrigeration system, hot water generation system, grease trap, arena dry sprinkler system, building automation system, arena controls, roof assembly, building envelope, siteworks and pavement.

The Request for Proposal was open for a month, closing on May 15.