The Town of Westlock will have to pay nearly 75 per cent more than original estimates to replace the Westlock Aquatic Centre’s roof after water damage to its insulation turned out worse than expected.
The town initially budgeted $169,400 for the project, based on a 2015 estimate, but that price tag has now jumped to $295,000.
Recent core samples of the roof have revealed that approximately 80-90 per cent of the its insulation has been damaged by moisture and leaking.
Though the water damage means a substantial price increase, CAO Dean Krause assured town councillors at their May 10 meeting that the cost could be easily absorbed using banked up Municipal Sustainability Initiative money.
Councillors approved the transfer of $36,769 leftover MSI funds from the Heritage Building roof repairs, which came in nearly $40,000 under budget.
The remaining $88,807 is being transferred from unallocated MSI funds in the town’s reserves.
Mayor Ralph Leriger said he was disappointed in the added expense, but called the building a top priority for the town’s recreational infrastructure.
“If the insulation is wet and needs replacing, then it needs replacing,” Leriger said.
“We’ve got to do it. It needs to be replaced. It has to be fixed. Not any of us are happy it’s $125,000 over, but it needs to be done,” added Coun. John Shoemaker.
Krause said the added damage is the result of a leaking membrane meant to shield the roof’s insulation from moisture and rain.
“We knew the membrane needed replacing. We were experiencing leaking into the building. There were small leaks of it getting through the membrane and not leaking into the building,” Krause said, explaining why the dampened insulation went undetected during original estimates in 2015.
“There’s no fault,” Krause said when asked about the accuracy of original estimates.
“The roof has reached its expected lifespan. Actually, it has gone beyond its expected lifespan. It’s due.”
Krause said that, though the dampened insulation means added costs, timelines for the fix are unaltered, and service delivery will remain unaffected throughout the month of June, when repairs are expected to take place.
“Typically a roof like this takes a couple of weeks to replace,” Krause noted.
“It doesn’t disrupt the operation of the aquatic centre.”
The province awarded the municipality $966,000 in MSI funding last July as part of a $880 million bump to fund municipal capital projects. The town’s current MSI balance, before the funding adjustment, was approximately $320,000.
