Melfort council adjusts budget for higher cost storm sewer project

Melfort council held a special meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 25 to increase the budget for the Third Ave. S. storm sewer project.

The original estimate of the storm sewer project was $75,000. However, the cost more than doubled to $194,620 due to some complications following an on-site visit from the engineers.

To accommodate for the near $120,000 increase, Melfort council was recommended to take the funding from two projects in the city’s 2019 Capital Budget – a data collector for water meters $38,000 and a waterline extension on Saskatchewan Dr. E. for $59,500 – and add it to the $75,000 initially budgeted for the storm sewer project. The remaining amount – engineering costs – will be funded through the city’s land development fund.

“We realized that we’re not far enough in the process of those particular items that we could take that money and move it into this project,” Mayor Rick Lang said. “The [data collector] really doesn’t serve a purpose until we have all the water meters replaced, and they haven’t all been replaced yet. We’ll bring that back to budget when the appropriate time is there.