THUNDER BAY — City officials are expressing relief after opening contractors' bids for the demolition of Victoriaville Mall and the revitalization of the city's south core.
The lowest offer of $18.4 million excluding HST – for which the city receives rebates – was submitted by Finnway General Contractor Inc., and meets the budget target that city staff had established.
Aaron Ward, manager of the city's engineering section, explained Tuesday that the city included a contingency of $1.3 million for the project, "so if we weren't to spend that entire contingency, then the base bid for the actual construction is about $17.1 million."
Ward said city staff had forecast last year that the cost would be $17.9 million excluding HST.
Although the evaluation of the bid is still not fully complete, he said the city is pleased.
"We're happy with the tender prices received, the informal results. It's in line with what our budget was. With the uncertainty around this ever-changing tariff situation, we were admittedly a little nervous."
Ward said the city still has to check each line item in the submission and meet with Finnway about the demolition and reconstruction schedule they're proposing.
"The tender documents did include that Victoria Avenue must be open by October 2026, and that final work such as streetscaping, planting and so on could be completed by June 30, 2027. We'd be looking to hear what their schedule is to meet that. How do they want to start, how are they going to phase their approach?"
He said because the bid is within budget, city council's approval is not required to award the contract, but staff will provide council with an update on the project in the coming weeks.
Assuming there are no surprises in the interim, work on the demolition of Victoriaville should begin by late May or early June.
