Gibsons council has awarded the first major contract for its plan to supply the water system’s Zone 3 from the aquifer.
Councillors voted July 24 to use Urban Systems for “design and construction services.” The company was one of two that bid on the contract, and director of infrastructure services Dave Newman told council that one of the reasons Urban Systems scored higher was its knowledge of the Town’s waterworks from previous contracts and its partnership with Waterline Resources, a firm that’s been involved in the aquifer mapping project.
“A lot of advanced thinking went into their proposal, so they’re going to be able to hit the ground running,” Newman said.
The $268,000 contract involves designing the system of wells, booster stations and chlorinators needed to draw enough additional water from the aquifer to supply the daily demands of Zone 3. The Town would still rely on the Sunshine Coast Regional District supply for “peak hour water use, emergency storage, and fire flow.”
The contract also includes oversight of the construction work, which will be put out to tender as the project moves forward.
A timeline provided by Newman anticipates the booster station and chlorinator could be ready for commissioning in the summer of 2019 – however, he cautioned councillors that this is a best-case scenario. “It’s something that we would hope to do, but everything would have to run smoothly,” he said.
The timing of construction will depend heavily on the funding being available.
If the Town decides to borrow to cover the project, an alternative approval process may be required, but the first choice is to secure a grant, and council passed a motion authorizing staff to apply for an infrastructure grant.
“It’s a very important project that I’m glad to see move forward,” said Coun. Silas White, who was chairing the meeting as deputy mayor in the absence of Mayor Wayne Rowe.
