A plan to build an all-weather patio at the city-owned restaurant on Burnaby Mountain is on the rocks due to ballooning costs and limited funding.
City council will vote Tuesday on whether to cancel the patio expansion project at Mintara Atop Burnaby Mountain.
The cost for the project has risen 30 per cent since March last year, when council approved the designs for a $2.6-million patio expansion, according to a staff report.
The project would include building a patio with moveable windows so it could be used year-round for events; the project would add 50 seats (2,000 square feet of dining space) to the existing 120 seats inside.
Patio budget increases
But updated costs for the project are now at $3.4 million, excluding GST and contingencies, even after value engineering (a process in which cheaper materials and processes are substituted to keep a project on budget).
Staff are now recommending cancelling the project and keeping the designs for a potential future redevelopment.
Changes to provincial legislation have impacted the city’s reserve funds, meaning the city has had to rethink its long-term capital plan.
“In light of the changes to funding and also the cost escalation for this project, staff recommend cancelling the project in favour of other higher priority projects within the (parks, recreation and culture) portfolio,” said the report.
The city has spent about $459,000 on the project to date. If council decides to cancel it, the city would have to spend about $20,000 more to close out costs to the contractor.
“The project’s design and drawings will be archived for future use; however, any future construction will likely be impacted by cost escalations due to inflation,” staff said.
Report includes other options, not recommended
But staff also offered council two other options.
Council could approve the new contract extension of almost $3 million to build the new patio according to the original design.
But the project is not currently included in the city’s draft five-year capital plan, and if council decides to go ahead with the patio expansion, it would need to be reprioritized in the budget.
Staff expect a new patio would generate a profit of up to $600,000 annually, with an expected payback period of six to seven years, according to the report.
“The project payback period is now over several years and as it would require reprioritization of other projects including important asset management and park development needs, staff do not recommend this option.”
Alternatively, councillors could also consider lower cost enhancements, such as accessibility upgrades, to the restaurant, but staff said this would still require re-allocating money in the budget.
The report said a lower-cost option would be “unlikely” to benefit the city.
“Previous findings suggest simpler upgrades would offer limited benefits and fail to address key operational and weather challenges effectively.”
Council will vote on the matter at its meeting Tuesday, Jan. 28.
