Town ‘not prepared to spend $7M’ on Gibson Centre expansion
September 9, 2025 at 4:32 AM
A major expansion project for the town’s public works operations has been put on hold as councillors are looking for alternatives ahead of next year’s budget deliberations.
After deferring a staff report at a meeting in July, councillors on Monday night voted instead to deny a recommended tender award that would have been for $7.2 million for the project. Instead, they’re asking staff to look for alternatives.
“I’m not prepared to spend $7 million right now on changes that are maybe necessary at Gibson Centre, but I would hope there would be some alternatives that could be presented to us going forward,” said Mayor Wayne Redekop.
Gibson Centre is home to the town’s public works operations, including roads and drainage, water and wastewater services, parks and cemetery services, and fleet maintenance.
A staff report highlighted growing operational demands, administrative space pressures and the need for updated infrastructure as reasons for the planned expansion.
The project included a new two-storey building and expansion of the vehicle bay area. It also included nearly $1 million in what was described as furniture, fixtures and equipment.
Increased project scope and inflationary pressures were considered the main drivers for the increased price tag, which came in well over the $4.1 million the town had budgeted.
With the report back before them, and no answers that gave councillors an appetite to move forward, they instead defeated the staff recommendation.
In its stead, Councillor Nick Dubanow put forward a motion that referred the matter back to staff to look at alternatives and to consider the impacts of temporary accommodations for staff, phasing options, and alternative financing.
“I just hope that when we send this back we have a fulsome look at it,” he said after introducing his motion.
While Councillor Joan Christensen was in agreement with the decision, she also reminded her fellow councillors that the town has a responsibility to serve its residents.
It was a comment Dubanow accepted.
“Customer service delivery is paramount but at the same time there are financial implications to everything we do,” he said.
CAO Chris McQueen said that given the rapidly approaching budget season, town staff have some built-in deadlines to search for alternatives, though phasing could push some of it back to future budgets.
“I appreciate some of the creative suggestions, ideas, and solutions that council has put forward,” McQueen said.
“We have a full appreciation that those are things we’ll address, look at, and some of the rationale around some of the space’s needs and some of the alternatives that we’ll expand on for that report coming back.”
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About The Author
Luke Edwards
Luke Edwards is a longtime Niagara community journalist who has covered a variety of beats, including business, agriculture, the wine industry and politics. When not writing, there's a good chance he can be found at a baseball diamond or curling rink.
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