St. Joseph work overdue and over budget but just about done
Final project costs for the reconstruction and extension work done on St-Joseph Street in Rockland exceed the expected budget by $ 75 000, and took double the amount of estimated time. The project, however, is now 99 per cent completed.
The initial budgeted cost of the work at the intersection of St-Joseph Street and Laurier Street was $2,470,000. The City has now calculated, however, that $2,544,990 is needed to cover all the final project expenditures. Instead of the projected eight-week plan, the work at the intersection ran over the course of 16 weeks. To compensate for going over budget, the City will be re-allocating the needed $75,000 from the 2017 Capital Program for Clark Road Easements, which had an initial budget of $100,000.
The St-Joseph Street project was awarded to STP Construction on December 13, 2016. Construction on the street began in the spring of 2017 and was substantially completed by the end of August. The road is now 99 per cent complete, with only two small items left to finish: minor landscaping and the installation of a water fountain and park bench that was donated by the Lavictoire family. These remaining works will be done in the spring of 2018.
A delay in construction that occurred in July led to extra costs. Administration had gone ahead with a construction plan that had not been approved by council. Construction was halted at that point and delayed for a month while the entire design was reassessed. The final decision was to maintain the three lanes (two northbound and one southbound) on St-Joseph, eliminating the idea of a bike path on both sides of the road.
As for the Clark Road Easement Project in the amount of $100,000, the project saw a sharp decline in costs after the City ran an assessment. The point of the project was to identify low points along the roadside ditch line and to seek out alternative drainage easements with affected property owners. As a solution to several drainage problems on certain properties, the City will be redirecting storm water to a city-owned unopened road allowance. This will significantly reduce the amount of money needed for the project and allow for the surplus to bail out the additional costs of the St-Joseph work.