With a number of reports, requests for proposals, and an appointment to the Airport Board, it was a busy night for Weyburn City Council Monday. 

In the report presented to the councillors by the Water Treatment Plant, it was noted all tests and samples met the standards imposed by Saskatchewan Environment. It was also noted Nickle Lake gained less than two centimetres of depth and is 91.1 centimetres from full level. In March, there were 98 million litres of water treated at the plant.  

The Public Works Department report detailed work that was done including water leaks, sewer main connections, street sweeping, and the hiring of summer students for the year. Other highlights included repairs done in preparation of the melt throughout March, as well as the investigation and clean-up after the fire at the landfill. 

The building department reported there were six permits issued over the course of the month, with a total value of $248,500. This brings the number of permits for the year up to 10, with a value of $1,511,500. 

The first of the RFP’s before the council for infrastructure work was for the dredging of the lagoon. The work had a budget of $300,000. It was recommended that the contract awarded to Kayden Industries of Calgary, who submitted a bid of $128,373.90. Council voted unanimously in favour of awarding the contract.  

Council then moved the discussion to the replacement of a water main on Allen Street, which had a budget of $350,000, paving included, in the 2021 budget. Contractors would be tasked with replacing 240 meters of water main, as well as backfilling and compacting it to make it ready for paving. The tender from A & B concrete, at $135,531, was the contract recommended by the administration out of the four bids. This was in part due to the ability of A & B to be able to meet a performance bond as well as proof of insurance.  

The RFPs for a number of water and wastewater infrastructure projects were also put forward. Those contracts were for four separate projects – hydrant replacement, street valve replacement, manhole refurbishment and catch basin repair and refurbishment. Margetts Construction fo Weyburn had their bids for the hydrant replacement and the street valve replacement, for $17,982 and $16,927.50 respectively, recommended by administration, while the bids from Jordan Excavating of Regina were recommended for the manhole refurbishment and the catch basin repair and refurbishment, at $18,204 and $15,861.90 respectively. 

Council then voted on a measure put forward by Councillor Dick Michel for Norm McFadden, Reeve of the RM of Weyburn, to be appointed to the Airport Board. The vote was passed unanimously. 

Then, the conversation turned to a topic that had been tabled at the last meeting – concrete work which had a number of tenders put forward. At the meeting in March, it was recommended by the administration for the contract for part one, the installation of accessible pedestrian ramps at eighteen locations, go to North Star Concrete, and the second part, the repair and installation of sidewalks in front of the Credit Union Spark Centre, to go to RGM Contracting.  

At the meeting in March, Councillor Mel Van Betuw inquired as to why the local company, A & B Concrete, did not receive the recommendation of the council. It was explained at the time the reason why the local company didn’t receive the bid was they did not meet all the requirements and provide all the information requested in the request for proposal. At the time, Van Betuw recommended council vote to award them the contract anyway, as their bids for both parts came in lower than the other companies, with a savings of roughly $16,000. 

At the meeting Monday, the engineering department explained the rules for the tender and the information that was requested by the companies as part of the request for proposal process. Then, the topic again opened up for discussion. 

City Councillor Ryan Janke stated he wants to support local companies as much as possible, “but on the other hand this does put the city at some risks to ignore our own procedures and bylaws on the matter, and I don’t know that I can really support changing it,” adding he would be supporting the motion as it exists, awarding the contract to the out-of-town companies.  

Councillor Van Betuw reiterated his point. 

“To me, it’s a matter of being fair, and I think we have to be fair to our local contractors, giving them a benefit of the doubt in this case,” he said during the meeting. “It’s not a typical situation for the city, so I don’t think we can say it’s going to set a precedent and give us a reputation.” He added the local companies pay taxes in Weyburn, and spend money in Weyburn, which will be better for the community overall.  

Councillor Jeff Richards said there should always be the need for going local first, however, he wanted to avoid a bastardization of the processes that are currently in place for the City of Weyburn and the tendering process. The administration did clarify that the recommendation does come from them for these contracts, however, it is ultimately up to the council for the final decision. 

Councillor John Corrigan understood where Van Betuw was coming from, however, he wanted to make sure the standards needed to be followed, as they need to mitigate risk to the city. He recommended at a future time the council look at the policies and procedures to clarify some of the wording to clear up any ambiguity.  

Councilor Dick Michel also stated that he wanted to support local, but everyone needs to be playing by the same rules. It was an opinion echoed by Councillor Laura Morrissette.  

Ultimately, council voted to accept the bids submitted by North Star Concrete and RGM Concrete by a vote of 6 to 1, with Councillor Van Betuw being the lone dissenting vote in the process.