'Unprecedented market conditions': Cost estimate for new East Gwillimbury recreation facility balloons to $67M

Yorkregion.com
Dec. 13, 2021

Waiting is the hardest part.

In East Gwillimbury’s case, the longer the town waits before building their new recreation centre with a pool, the more expensive it seems to get. Last year, town staff said the Health and Active Living Plaza (HALP) planned in Queensville on Leslie Street was estimated to cost around $50 million. A little more than a year later, that estimated price tag has ballooned to $67 million.

The reason for the 34-per-cent increase in the estimated price tag is due to building inflation, town staff said.

East Gwillimbury General Manager of Parks, Recreation and Culture Aaron Karmazyn said the COVID-19 pandemic has made everything more expensive.

“What we have noticed is unprecedented market conditions,” Karmazyn said.

The cost leap has caused the town to find alternative ways to make sure it can afford the building. Ward 2 Coun. Tara Roy-DiClemente said council has been prudent in planning for this facility. “We had to change our development charges bylaw in order to be able to account for what I call an eye-watering uptick in price of this building,” She said.

Roy-DiClemente wasn’t the only one a little hesitant at the new estimated cost of the building. “I too was a little staggered when I saw the 15- to 25-per-cent increase across the board,” Coun. 1 Terry Foster said.

The design of the new building is in progress, with the town estimating completion of the design phase sometime next year along with a potential tender for the massive project.

The goal is for the facility to be open in 2024 or 2025.   

“It’s just the beginning of something very special for East Gwillimbury,” Mayor Virginia Hackson said. She understands the concern with the rising cost of the facility. “I am concerned that we are very early in this stage and adding substantially more,” she said.

According to a staff report, the total facility construction is estimated at $57 million, with another $7.5 million for park and promenade construction, as well as another $1.5 million for furniture, fixtures and equipment.

The HALP will feature more than 80,000 sq. ft. of facility space including East Gwillimbury’s first-ever aquatics centre; library; maker space and sound studio; gymnasium, with track and potential fitness amenities (weights and cardio); program spaces, with a teaching kitchen; an interior boardwalk space with public art; and an interactive nature-themed play space.

The park space will include teaching and reading gardens, outdoor cooking space, a playground and splash pad, skate park and pump track, multi-use sport courts, outdoor game tables and beach volleyball and some sports field space.

Karmazyn said the he impacts of COVID-19 and market conditions have driven up costs by approximately 15 to 25 per cent.  Shortage of labour, supplies and materials have significantly affected construction costs.  Town staff said there is a back-log in demand for multi-use recreational facility construction. This demand further adds to cost pressures.

As part of the budget deliberations, council approved an additional $990,000 in net-zero initiatives for the facility that will pay themselves back over time. Included in the initiatives are a built-in pool cover, smart building AI automation and making the facility solar ready.

The project is funded by development charges for the design and construction of the facility. The town is gearing up to pay for the added cost of operating the facility with phased tax increases. During its 2022 budget presentation, Director of Finance Warren Marshall proposed 0.8-per-cent tax increase for four years to pay for the $1.6-million estimated operating cost of the facility.

The town is planning to time the opening of the facility to when its population reaches 40,000.

There is some hope that building inflation may go down, but Roy-DiClemente said they are being fiscally prudent in planning. “We are responding to market conditions that may change but may not,” she said.