The Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) has approved the next stage of procurement for the proposed Castlegar and District Arena and Walking Track project.
During the July 16 board meeting, directors approved inviting three companies, Scott Builders Inc., Smith Bros. & Wilson (Construction) Ltd. and Kalesnikoff Mass Timber Inc., to participate in the second stage of the negotiated request for proposals process.
Although the original plan anticipated two proponents and a $100,000 honorarium budget, staff felt adding a third qualified proponent would strengthen competition, reduce the risk of receiving only one or no compliant proposals, and improve the reliability of testing whether the project can be delivered within the $15 million budget.
To support that approach, directors approved a $50,000 increase in the Stage 2 honorarium budget to $150,000 to accommodate a third proponent. The additional funds will be split between the City of Castlegar and Electoral Area J.
Additionally, a $45,000 budget for a public engagement program was approved and up to $90,000 for a geotechnical assessment was needed to support the project’s next phase. That funding had already been endorsed by the Castlegar and District Recreation Commission and the City of Castlegar.
The RDCK said HCMA Architecture & Design will manage the public engagement, but only if the project advances to the referendum phase
An amended 10-year budget for the project was also adopted and directors gave a third reading to both the proposed service establishment bylaw and the loan authorization bylaw.
The window for the successful proponent to exercise naming rights has also been shortened from 24 months to 12 months.
The naming rights are intended to help offset construction costs by allowing the successful design-build team to assign a value to the rights and deduct that amount from its bid.
Area I director Andy Davidoff noted the amount of money being committed before voters have a chance to weigh in.
“I just want to duly note it for the record that in addition to all of this, there’s another $280,000 that has been allocated to this project,” he said. “If the referendum fails, then that $280,000 is lost. So we’re up to almost a half a million dollars prior to pre-referendum.”
The proposed project would add a second NHL-sized ice sheet and an overhead walking track connected to the Castlegar and District Community Complex, replacing the demolished Pioneer Arena.
A referendum on the project is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 28, although the RDCK has previously said that timeline remains subject to approvals and could change.
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