Cost of reopening Portage & Main to pedestrians rises by $8 million

The cost of reopening Portage and Main to pedestrians will cost the City of Winnipeg $8 million more than it expected because the only construction company interested in the work bid higher than expected, the city's public works department says in a new report.

City council voted in March to reopen the intersection, which has been closed to above-ground pedestrian traffic for more than four decades. The city then sought a company capable of completing the work by July 1, 2025.

The sole bidder, M.D. Steele Construction Ltd., offered to do the work for $16.1 million, plus GST, engineering manager Brad Neirinck wrote in a report to council's public works committee.

This will push the project budget up from $13 million to $21.3 million, he wrote, adding it was difficult to project how much the construction work would cost.

"Due to the unique nature of the project, it was challenging to calculate an estimate for it as there were no comparable projects to refer to," Neirinck wrote.

"The additional budget is attributed to an aggressive schedule requiring significant labour and risk to complete it on time, the requirements of subcontractor works requiring significant oversight, complex interaction between public right-of-way and private properties, and that construction will primarily occur over the winter months, which brings several logistical challenges."

Public works is not asking city council for more money to complete the project. Instead, it plans to redirect some money from the existing street-renewal budget, Neirinck wrote.

A spokesperson for Mayor Scott Gillingham said he is not taken aback by the budget hike for the work at Portage and Main. 

"With construction costs rising across the board and a tight deadline to reopen the intersection at the same time the new transit network launches in June, the bid price isn't a complete surprise," Colin Fast said in a statement. 

"Crews will be working quickly through the winter to make sure this stays on track."

According to the construction tender, M.D. Steele Construction must demolish and remove the concrete barriers at Portage and Main, add new curbs and sidewalks to allow pedestrians to cross at all four corners and extend the curb at the southeast corner.

The contractor is also expected to work on all four corners of the intersection simultaneously and allow access to the businesses in the area during construction period.

Council voted to reopen the intersection after a report to city council said it would cost $73 million to replace the waterproof membrane protecting the underground concourse and cause up to five years of traffic delays.  

That concourse is now slated to close, something property owners adjacent the intersection largely oppose.