‘EXolution’ project employing local trades

By Tim Kalinowski on April 30, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDtkalinowski@lethbridgeherald.com

To this point in the construction of its news “EXolution” conference centre and agri-food hub, the Lethbridge & District Exhibition has used largely local trades providing a direct and immediate stimulus to the local economy.
Exhibition Park Chief Operating Officer Mike Warkentin told city council’s Economic Standing Policy Committee on Wednesday that of the 3,920 worker hours put in on the site to date that over 70 per cent, or about 3,500 hours, had been filled by local trades.
“This project certainly is a community project that has invested money back into the construction industry in Lethbridge,” Warkentin reported proudly to committee members.
Warkentin said so far the open bids received from local trades and contractors have also represented the best value for money project managers have received, making it an easy decision to continue to tap local trades whenever possible.
“To this point the best value for our dollar has presented itself as local trades,” he confirmed.
This significant percentage of local trades was not expected to continue for the entirety of the project as specialists would have to be brought in later stages, Warkentin said, but the Exhibition was determined to use local trades as much as it feasibly could as the project continues.
“The guidance we have received on this specifically is that we follow the best value for dollar so we ensure the money goes the furthest on this project,” Warkentin explained. “And so we do have the ability if there is better value from a local trade to use them and not necessarily be bound to the low bidder. However, that being said, we don’t anticipate these (local) numbers to maintain as high as they are because there are elements of this building that we anticipate not being able to be completed by local trades.”
This applies to both the value for dollar aspect, and the vast scale of the project, Exhibition past president Bruce Galts confirmed in an aside to Warkentin’s comments, which smaller local firms might not be able to cover as part of their risks in their portfolios.

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