Ledcor has been hired to get the design of a new downtown library modified so it can be delivered within the existing budget.
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The Saskatoon Public Library has announced the winner of a contract to modify the design of its proposed downtown branch to address cost overruns that forced a delay of the original plan for the project.
Ledcor Construction Limited will receive just over $500,000 for what were termed “pre-construction services” in an SPL media release issued Monday to announce the contract award. These services include working with designers and engineers to update the plans for the new downtown branch to make it fit the existing budget.
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Ledcor will then get about $16.8 million to “see the building through to completion” as the construction manager for the project once construction gets underway. Ledcor’s fees are being absorbed in the project’s existing budget. The library last reported construction of the new facility was expected to cost $79.4 million.
The library expects work to begin this summer at the site of the proposed building, near the intersection of Second Avenue and 25th Street. The new central library is expected to open in 2027.
The library board announced in September that it would seek a construction manager for the project to replace the aging Frances Morrison Central Library building. A tender for the construction work was cancelled at that time, with the library reporting inflation was driving cost overruns.
Plans to build a new central library branch drew scrutiny during the recent municipal budget process, with Saskatoon business groups and some members of council questioning the decision to pursue a multi-million dollar capital project while the economy remains unsettled by lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Provincial law gives Saskatoon city council representation on the SPL board, and authority to appoint board members. Council is also required to approve the SPL’s budget and must sign off on any borrowing undertaken on the SPL’s behalf.
The law doesn’t give council authority to direct the SPL board on the downtown branch, or other operational matters.
The SPL is funded by its own portion of property tax, collected separately from the city’s. The library board began in 2009 to split mill rate increases between operations and funding for a new central branch, gradually amassing the budget for the project.
The Frances Morrison building at 311 23rd St. E was built in 1966. Library officials have identified issues with the building’s electrical and ventilation systems amid other problems, making renovations too expensive to be worthwhile for the library.
The building was sold to Duchuck Holdings Ltd. for $4.45 million in a deal announced in early 2023. The SPL announced at that time that the Frances Morrison branch would continue to operate until closer to the opening of the new central branch. Duchuck is not expected to take over the building until 2026.
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