Work contract for biosolids facility approved by city committee

A biosolids facility at Winnipeg's North End Sewage Treatment Plant took a step closer to reality Thursday.

The water and waste committee approved a $95 million work contract for the facility during a special meeting. The contract will be going to Red River Biosolids Partners, a joint venture between Aecon Water Infrastructure Inc., Oscar Renda Contracting of Canada Inc., and MWH Constructors Canada Ltd.

The contract, which would see sludge turned into a reusable biosolid, could lead to up to $1 billion worth of work.

The work was previously discussed on Tuesday, but voting was held based on concerns from delegations over the economic impact and Manitobans losing out on work to companies from outside the province.

Coun. Brian Mayes voted against awarding the contract, saying while he's received lots of information from public service, he needed further advice.

"We're hiring a chief construction officer whose job is going to be to advise directly members of council about big construction projects," he said. "Nothing's getting bigger than this, I think, during the life of this council. So it's a huge contract that's at stake."

The chief construction officer was approved in this year's budget, but has not been hired yet. Hayes said this position is needed to help advise councillors on things they could be missing in advisory reports.

"There are things you don't know, the things you're not experienced in," he said. "So given some of the cost overrun history, I think it's fair to have concerns."