Federal Bridge Corporation has decided to re-tender a contract for a second phase of the reconstruction efforts at the Sault Ste. Marie bridge plaza.
André Girard, the spokesman for the Crown agency overseeing the $51.6-million project on the Canadian side of the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge, said engineers had concerns about the bids received over the summer that involved proposed construction of a new administration building and inspection area for Canada Border Services Agency.
“We went to tender and it came up way too high, so we had to re-tender.”
Girard said it is not Federal Bridge policy to identify the bidding companies, but sources told Northern Ontario Business that the three bidders were Ellis-Don, Double Century Group and LP Ciminelli.
He gave no date when the re-tendering process might take place or how it might impact the project’s overall timelines.
Last spring, Girard told SooToday.com, a local media outlet, that the plaza’s completion date was set for spring 2017. He declined to say if the corporation has set a new date.
“Right now that phase is slightly delayed because of the tender. But it’s not a bank account, it’s a budget given to us by the federal government. The tender’s too high. We just can’t do it,” he said.
“We’ll take the time required. But there’s not much happening anyway in the winter.
“If we change the specs the tendering will be different and the timeline as well. It’s too early at this point (to give a date).
“The project will be completed when it’s completed.”
Girard said work on a new duty free store and maintenance garage is “pretty close to being finished.”
He pointed to construction photos recently posted on the Federal Bridge blog. “You can see it’s progressing well.”
In November 2013, George Stone and Sons, a Sault contractor, was awarded a $10.9-million contract, known as Package B, to build the retail store, garage and widen a ramp connecting the plaza to the Carmen’s Way truck route.
Package A is the administration building and vehicle, truck and bus inspection area.
Girard was unable to say if any major design changes for the plaza are in the offing when the next phase is re-tendered.
“How can we tell you? If we go to tender and it’s way too high again, we’ll have to definitely sit down and do our homework again.”
Girard said no scope changes are taking place since the two engineers assigned to the Sault project are also busy working on the North Channel bridge replacement at Cornwall and the Thousand Islands Bridge near Ganonoque.
The Sault plaza reconstruction has had its share of delays since Prime Minister Stephen Harper earmarked $44.1 million in September 2009 to deliver new infrastructure and updated security enhancements. The plaza hasn’t experienced a substantial facelift since the International Bridge opened in 1962.
The original completion date was April 1, 2014.
But the project timelines have been drawn out due to delays in purchasing residential homes around the plaza. Approximately $5 million was spent on property acquisition.
Federal transport minister Lisa Raitt arrived in town last April to top the plaza budget with an additional $7.5 million.
Unlike other Canadian border crossings, a tricky and risky aspect of the Sault project is the contractual commitment to keep the border crossing open while construction takes place. The plaza was built on a small property footprint during the bridge’s construction in the early 1960s and can easily get congested during peak traffic periods.
Girard refused comment on if the high bids received from contractors can be attributed to these risks.
“You have to work with the existing site and coordinate new construction around the old (site) to keep the port functioning.”
Meanwhile on the U.S. side of the International Bridge, two new toll booths were installed this fall as part of an $8.9-million plaza reconstruction. The Michigan Department of Transportation expects to have six booths operating by year’s end.
“The project is on schedule with the goal to complete all of the toll booth plaza before the end of the year so that all six of the new booths are available for customers,” said project manager Karl Hansen in a release. “The new bridge administration building should also be roughed in by the new year so interior work can proceed through the winter months.”
The entire project, which will be completed by October 2015, is funded from bridge toll reserves. The contractor is DeVere Construction from Alpena, Mich.
The Sault International Bridge is jointly owned by the Canadian government and the State of Michigan. About 1.9 million vehicles cross the 4.5-kilometre span every year.
