The City of 91大黄鸭 is seeking a builder to submit designs for a pedestrian and cyclist overpass that will span Highway 97.

The bridge would connect Central Green to Bertram Street over the highway.

On Dec. 23, 2019, the city quietly opened a bidding opportunity for the project.

鈥淭he consultant will be responsible for detailed design development, construction documentation preparation and tender services,鈥� states the .

The city budgeted $500,000 for the bridge鈥檚 design in its 2020 provisional budget.

This number initially struck some councillors as too much, with Coun. Luke Stack saying the number is 鈥渞emarkably high,鈥� during budget deliberations on Dec. 12, 2019.

Coun. Charlie Hodge added that he found the amount 鈥渟taggering.鈥�

Rafael Villareal, a city transportation planner, said the costs are normal for a project like this.

鈥淚t鈥檚 normal for design costs of a major project to be around 10 per cent of the total cost. It鈥檚 like that for every single infrastructure project we do.鈥�

The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure made the pedestrian bridge a mandatory project in the site鈥檚 2012 rezoning.

Developers must declare their intent to bid on the project by Jan. 30.

Construction is anticipated to begin in 2021.

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michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
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