Summary#
Montréal city council adopted a decision awarding FER-PAL Construction ltd. a contract for water-pipe and street work in Ahuntsic-Cartierville and Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension. The decision authorizes a maximum total expense of $11,103,483.78, taxes included.
- The work includes rehabilitating about 2.6 kilometres of water pipes, replacing about 53 lead water connections on public property and 15 on private property, and repairing about 30,000 m² of road and 420 m² of sidewalks.
- The City must evaluate FER-PAL’s performance under the contract. Contract penalties may apply for specified delays and other failures, including late street cleaning or correction of defects.
- The contract was awarded through public call for tenders 524106. FER-PAL submitted the lowest compliant bid with an experience clause; three firms submitted bids.
- The City of Montréal, as the central city, pays the full authorized expense.
What it means for you#
- Residents on affected streets: Water-pipe, road and sidewalk work is planned in both boroughs. The supplied material does not include the street list or a work schedule.
- Residents with private lead water connections: The contract includes replacing about 15 connections on private property, under bylaw 20-030. The material does not say whether homeowners will be charged.
- The City: It must pay the authorized expense and evaluate the contractor’s performance. No bonus is provided for the contractor.
Money#
The maximum authorized expense is $11,103,483.78, taxes included, paid entirely by the City of Montréal.
- The contract itself is $9,448,748.17, taxes included.
- The authorization also includes $1,417,312.23 for contingencies and $237,423.38 for related professional and technical services.
- FER-PAL’s bid was $502,649.05, or 5.62%, above the City’s estimate. It was $649,251.83, or 6.87%, below the second-lowest compliant bid.
What is unclear#
- The materials do not give the contract’s duration, street-by-street schedule, or the streets included.
- They do not explain whether owners pay any cost for work on private property, or how this contract interacts with earlier arrangements for replacing private lead connections.
- The materials do not say how much of the contingency budget will be used.
Case for#
- City staff say trenchless pipe rehabilitation can be faster and reduce disruption to nearby infrastructure and the amount of excavated material.
- The work combines pipe rehabilitation with road and sidewalk repairs, and includes replacement of lead connections.
- Three firms submitted bids, and FER-PAL’s was the lowest compliant one.
Case against#
- The accepted bid was 5.62% above the City’s estimate, and the decision authorizes a further $1,654,735.61 for contingencies and related services.
- Only three firms submitted bids; the materials do not explain why the other seven firms that obtained the tender documents did not bid.
- The materials do not give a schedule or explain whether owners will face costs for work on private property.