City of Powell River Council has approved a contract with Falcon Electric in the amount of $1,260,000, plus GST, for electrical upgrades and an emergency backup system for Powell River Recreation Complex.
At the August 21 city council meeting, councillors deliberated a motion to increase the project budget in the amount of $447,324, with the increase funded by the Powell River Community Forest reserve fund.
Acting director of infrastructure Rod Fraser said a request had been made for additional funding to complete the project and to award the contract. He added that the project includes the removal of old, aging cabling, replacing components with modern equivalents. It also includes the installation of a backup generator for the recreation complex so the ice can be kept cold in the event of a power outage, such as the community-wide outage coming up on September 13.
“The project was sent out for a request for proposals on July 9,” said Fraser. “We received one submission. It was from a local contractor, Falcon Electric. Initially, their bid was $1,347,000 and after some negotiations with Falcon, the new price of $1,260,000 was submitted.”
Fraser said with council’s approval, the additional funds would come from the community forest.
“They were gracious enough to write a letter of support,” added Fraser.
As far as construction goes, Falcon Electric would start quickly with the design, according to Fraser. Falcon Electric would likely be on site at the end of the year or early next year, with completion in July 2026, according to the plan. He said there is significant lead time on delivery for some of the equipment that is required for the project.
City councillor Earl Almeida asked, since the complex swimming pools shuts down for a couple of weeks toward the end of August, if there was the possibility of timing the two shutdowns concurrently.
Kevin Clarkson, manager of parks and facilities, said staff members were exploring the time of the shutdown required.
Councillor Cindy Elliott asked if the electrical upgrade would save the city power consumption.
Fraser said he did not believe the project was designed to do that.
“It’s designed to upgrade what is there,” said Fraser. “There are a number of systems that are very old. Should they go down, there is a long lead time, up to 10 months, to replace that equipment, so this project would allow us to refresh, renew and upgrade all these electrical systems.”
Council unanimously approved the motion to amend the city’s 2025 financial plan bylaw for the recreation complex electrical upgrades and emergency backup system, to increase the project budget in the amount of $447,324, with the increase funded by Powell River Community Forest, and that the contract be awarded to Falcon Electric in the amount of $1,260,000, plus GST.
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