New Ottawa central library Ādisōke to cost $36-million more as city narrows builder search

The procurement process for Ādisōke, the Ottawa Public Library and Library and Archives Canada Joint Facility, has closed and now the city says it has come down to two bids.

In a memo to city council Thursday evening, Stephen Willis, general manager of Planning, Infrastructure and Economic Development Committee, says the report and its results will be considered at the October 19 Finance and Economic Development Committee (FEDCO) meeting. That report will include a project update, the procurement tender results, project budget and project schedule. 

The report points out that, given the implications of COVID-19 on labour and material supply, the project schedule has been changed so that the official opening will be in Summer 2026, to “allow for a financially efficient and realistic construction schedule.”

Willis also notes that two bids were received from the pre-qualified general contractors, with the lowest bid coming from PCL Construction Canada Inc.

“The bid price results in an increase to City and Ottawa Public Library (OPL) costs by $36 [million] and $28 [million] respectively,” Willis wrote in the memo. “The Library and Archives Canada portion on the cost of increases are fully funded by the Federal Government.”

This increase in costs, he adds, can be attributed to the escalation in the Ottawa construction market since the estimate was developed in 2016.

The initial estimate developed in 2016 included a 10 per cent escalation contingency but actual observed construction inflation in Ottawa, as outlined in Statistics Canada to mid-point construction is now in excess of 65 per cent, which was confirmed by a third-party quantity surveyor.

The 55 per cent difference in anticipated inflation versus actual is the cause of the increase from the original project estimate and the actual project costs.

Willis says the Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer, working with city and OPL staff, has confirmed that this revised amount is affordable within the council-imposed debt ceiling of 7.5 per cent for tax-supported debt servicing as a percentage of own source revenues with the recommended funding strategy.

That strategy includes a combination of retiring debt, increased OPL capital contribution, taking advantage of preferential interest rates and servicing the debt over 40 years, which aligns to the life of the building.

Once approved by council, construction for the Ādisōke is expected to start in November 2021, and once the contract has been awarded.