SOUTH SURREY — The $55-million Grandview Aquatics Centre is nearing completion and staff say it will come in on budget, perhaps even under budget.
The new facility, on the corner of 168th Street and 24th Avenue, will feature a 10-lane Olympic-sized pool, a 50-metre competitive main pool, a family and leisure pool, water slides, diving towers and a weight room.
It will be able to host 900 spectators.
On Sept. 14, staff received city council’s approval to spend an extra $95,000 on project management, increasing the maximum to $600,000. But staff say that money is within the $55 million budget.
“We just finished the Guildford pool recently and that one is under warranty and we’re finalizing deficiencies. We’re kind of busy with that one, so we decided to get a consultant to do that part of the work on this project,” said manager of planning and development Jean Lamontagne of the need for the dollars.
He insisted the Grandview project is on budget.
“We did our homework,” said Lamontagne. “Hopefully we’ll actually have some money left over…. I don’t recall the last time I had a project that went over. We’re very careful because at the end of the day that’s public money.”
He said it may seem complicated as there’s been a number of contracts awarded for the project throughout the years, as the city has had money allocated toward the facility going back as far as the 2011 budget.
“But they’re all within the $55 million,” he stressed.
While the building is set to be finished in September, Lamontagne said the grand opening will likely be in January after the facility has been tested.
Guildford Recreation Centre’s new aquatics centre, featuring an eight-lane Olympic-sized pool, opened in March.
With files from Christopher Poon