UNITED COUNTIES, Ontario – During this fiscal year, the SDG Counties dished out over $10 million on paving projects alone.
“It is a cost that we would be paying one way or the other,” said Ben De Haan, Director of Transportation and Planning Services of SDG Counties.
During the last SDG Counties council meeting of the year on Monday, Dec. 17, an additional payment adjustment of $224,963.98 to Cornwall Gravel for asphalt cement was passed. This adjustment contributes to an overall additional cost of approximately $420,500 for asphalt cement this year. This is the largest adjustment De Haan has seen over the last 10 years.
“The cost is for a product that goes into making asphalt, a petroleum product…it does see that market volatility that you see with gas. This is typical for all paving contractors in Ontario,” explained De Haan, referring to the AC Adjustment Clause which protects both contractors and owners in the province from the fluctuating market pricing.
“In some years, SDG benefits from AC savings, and in other years (such as 2018), SDG is required to compensate the contractor for the increased material input costs,” read a statement in the action request concerning the price adjustment.
De Haan listed a few paving projects that contributed to the overall $10 million price tag, including $1.3 million for work on County Rd. 31 outside of Winchester, $1.3 million for work on County Rd. 43 near Monkland, $1.7 million for work on County Rd. 23 in Curry Hill and $700,000 for work on Headline Rd.
“Every year we try to do more,” said De Haan, who feels that the Counties have relatively stable and robust paving projects.
“We tendered early to make sure all of our projects are lined up for the year,” he added.
De Haan reinforced that the cost adjustment is inevitable, and the clause is implemented to ensure that contractors are fairly compensated while taking the risk out of bidding.
Additional to the total cost of paving projects, SDG Counties spent over $18 million towards Asset Management and Capital Works, which includes but is not limited to bridge work, reconstruction and design work, and replacing storm sewers.
