City To Cover Extra Drinking Water Project Costs

Saint John is on the hook for unforeseen costs as part of the $210-million drinking water project.

Council approved a $2-million payment to Port City Water Partners, the public-private partnership overseeing the project, on Monday night.

Mayor Don Darling told reporters the money covers costs related to contamination found during construction.

“From being on the steering committee, I think there was some oil in some cases that needed to be cleaned,” said Darling.

“In any case with environmental contamination, the appropriate people would be involved and that would be cleaned up in those areas.”

Payment Not A Penalty

When asked if the payment is a penalty for the city, Darling told reporters it is not.

He said the partnership bore many of the project risks, but contamination was one the city decided to take on.

“The project is still under budget but not quite on time,” Darling said. “We’re running a bit behind with a projected finish date now of May.”

Darling said the contamination costs represent less than one per cent of the value of the project.