Bids to replace Windsor's peace fountain over budget, 2025 return 'not practical'

City council is being asked to pick a new path forward after the bid to replace Windsor's peace fountain came in above a previously approved $8-million budget.

Picking an alternate option will mean that the Charles Brooks Memorial Peace Fountain will not be replaced for the 2025 summer season.

Staff had initial planned to have a new, year-round floating fountain on the Detroit River at Reaume Park ready for next year after the city decommissioned the previous version that served the area for 45 years.

But the city struggled to get interest from fountain vendors for the project because of how complex the project would be.

The concept called for a fountain that would operate on the water in the summer and winter as an illuminated fountain, instead of being removed and stored on land during winter like the previous version.

Ultimately, there was one company that passed technical submission requirements for the fountain concept but costs would "far exceed the budget amount" estimated in 2022.

Replacement project has to 'start over'

The report to council outlined "significant unknowns and risks" the fountain vendor had with the concept because of riverbed elevations and varying river levels.

It also raised concerns that ice floes would cause significant damage to the fountain in the winter.

Council directed to staff to bring back cost-effective alternatives after telling staff to not award the project during an in-camera meeting earlier this month. 

Staff now suggest council move forward with either a fountain that sprays from land into the water or one similar to the previous version that's removed from the water during winter.

Neither have an estimated cost or timeline attached. 

Interim commissioner of infrastructure services Mark Winterton acknowledged that this will delay the return of Windsor's iconic water feature beyond 2025.

"We're now in a position where we essentially have to start over," said Winterton.

Council initiated the process of replacing the peace fountain in 2019 when a consultant was hired to design a replacement structure as the fountain tallied up expensive repair bills.

Winterton said it was a challenge to recreate the former fountain because it's "very bespoke."

"This is a one off, something that's almost unique in the world," he said. 

"We were trying to get the direction of council to make it so that we wouldn't have to remove it in the winter but it is very much a challenge with ice and river conditions."

This is the latest project that has had cost increases after a budget was previously approved by council.

"Certainly we've struggled recently with construction overruns as contractors are are busy and we have done everything  we can to try and keep our prices under control," said Winterton.

"But for some projects, when they're rather bespoke, sometimes the value comes in over budget."