Iqaluit council picks design firm for aquatic centre, clarifies borrowing

Stantec Architecture Ltd. will act as prime consultants for Iqaluit’s proposed aquatic centre, as shown here in an artist’s depiction. (FILE IMAGE)

The City of Iqaluit decided April 30 to award a design contract costing $3,165,291 plus GST to Stantec Architecture Ltd., who will act as prime consultants for Iqaluit’s proposed aquatic centre.

Last October, the ratepayers of Iqaluit said yes to the City of Iqaluit borrowing up to $40-million to build a new aquatic centre.

And this past February, council chose a company called MHPM Project Managers Inc. to manage the project.

This week, council’s aquatic centre building committee recommended that council award the design contract to Stantec.

Stantec, a large global design firm, has done work in the North before, including the blueprints for Iqaluit’s proposed “interim” jail.

An amendment to the bylaw that authorizes the city to borrow up to $40 million for the development of a new aquatic centre also went through second reading during the same April 30 meeting.

The bylaw amendment clarified the terms of the proposed borrowing and “the security to be provided,” the amendment said.

The first nine sections of the bylaw have been repealed, with certain amendments including:

• the city may draw funds under the loan as and when required, to the maximum principal amount of $40 million, or a lesser amount as may be required to complete the project;

• until the project is complete, the loan will be repayable by payments of interest only with interest at a variable rate to be negotiated;

• that rate would not exceed more than three per cent each year above the prime rate;

• when the project is finished, or on the fifth anniversary of the first draw of loan funds, whichever happens first, the outstanding principal balance will become payable by equal installments of principal and interest amounts sufficient to repay the loan within 25 years of the “term commencement date;” and,

• the interest may not go over 10 per cent a year, and will be fixed for a term of up to 25 years.

The loan would be repaid from the general revenues of the city.

Though there may be penalties for repaying the balance early, the city’s recreation director, Amy Elgersma, said that the terms would be kept “as low as possible.”

Coun. Terry Dobbin wanted to know why the cost of the aquatic centre is triple the figure used seven years ago, when ratepayers, in a referendum, rejected the borrowing of $18 million over five years.

That was the amount cited in the Iqaluit ratepayers vote in 2006, when borrowing for a new city hall was rejected, as well as borrowing for a new recreation centre, which would have included a replacement pool.

Elgersma said the new cost takes into account the number of years that have gone by since that referendum, accounting for inflation costs and the proposed size of the aquatic centre.

“The facility that is proposed is quite a bit larger than the one that was proposed back in the day,” she said.

When Dobbin asked about operational costs for the facility, Elgersma said the borrowing itself only deals with the project itself — not any operational costs.

Coun. Bell and Coun. Dobbin each opposed the motion to award Stantec the contract.

A lawyer was present in council chambers via telephone, but councillors did not ask him any questions