Progress on Bradford’s future town hall continues to build momentum.
Terry Foran, director of recreation and cultural services, and Steve Neely, the town’s manager of construction projects, provided council’s strategic initiatives committee with an update on the building planned for 125 Simcoe Rd. — now referred to as a civic centre — during the committee’s Nov. 26 meeting.
While Moriyama Teshima Architects (MTA) are still working on the design of the facility, staff have also been working on the layout of the auditorium.
That’s been updated from what MTA presented on Aug. 27 with help from potential users such as Music in Motion Performing Arts and Elite Dance Corps to better determine stage sizing, green rooms, change rooms, set storage, sightlines, lighting and sound.
Foran explained staff have also had discussions with other theatre operators — including Steven Leacock Theatre, Gibson Theatre and South Simcoe Theatre — to ensure the auditorium can be well used.
“We’re always thinking about these things,” he said. “We can’t make it so huge that it’s unaffordable, but we want to make it big enough that it’s functional for those that might be interested.”
That includes a new council arrangement which would see chairs and tables rolled into position in front of the stage as needed and stored when not in use, compared the previous plan to keep them at the back half of the stage where they could be hidden by a curtain while not in use.
As a result, the seat count at floor level has been updated to include 185 fixed seats and 135 removable seats, plus another 66 seats are proposed for a balcony, bringing the total maximum number for performances to 386.
Ward 3 Coun. Ben Verkaik called that a “good use of space” to maximize the auditorium, but wanted to make sure the council arrangement wouldn’t look “chintzy” or be too difficult for staff to switch between the two layouts.
Foran assured council that wouldn’t be an issue and explained he has worked in convertible facilities before and understands them well.
“We want to be as flexible as possible, opening up the doors for as many activities that can take place, without being too limited,” he said.
What comes next?
Neely also presented an update on the project’s anticipated timeline.
If all goes well, that should include more accurate cost estimates in February or March, design approvals in March, the 30-per-cent design documents in June or July, further refined cost estimates in June or July, council’s authorization to send to market a request for proposals (RFP) on the design-build contract in July, followed by posting the RFP in July or August.
Neely explained staff are deciding between various different procurement processes, with the town’s typical procedure requiring the RFP to be posted for at least 25 days, though Neely expected requests for extensions as proponents will need to invest “extensive” effort to prepare a “long list” of documents.
That would be followed by a 30-day period to review proposals before negotiations begin with preferred proponents to see who can provide the best final offer.
After that offer is selected, the town and proponent still need to hammer out the terms and conditions, which can take “a number of weeks.”
Once that contract is awarded, work can begin on site preparation, the building foundation, the superstructure, landscaping and a technical review in which the design builder will be expected to explain how they plan to achieve the town's performance requirements.
While Ward 5 Coun. Peter Ferragine had concerns that some prior town projects had only attracted a few bids each, Neely explained “multiple big contractors” have already expressed interest in the civic centre.
Working in the private sector, Ward 6 Coun. Nickolas Harper said the town is frequently “overcharged” or “gouged” on projects, where contractors ask to increase costs after projects are already underway.
While Foran said the town has been more successful recently in reducing change orders to increase costs, he called them “inevitable,” which is why contingency funds have been built into the project’s budget, for which construction is estimated to cost about $100 million.
One of the benefits of the design-build contract is that accountability for cost estimates is partially put onto the contractor, according to Neely.
After the meeting, Foran said there were still too many variables to say for certain the timeline of construction, but if all goes well, he confirmed the project could break ground before the end of 2025.
During the meeting, he pointed to the new fire hall, where he said the contractor was able to break ground just two months after the contract was awarded, due largely to the nature of the design-build process, and the town issuing partial permits so work could start.
In a report to council last September, Neely explained the design-build process is faster than traditional methods as the town and its consultants only need to complete the design to 30 per cent, and then the chosen contractor can complete the remaining 70 per cent.
