The estimated cost of a plan to tear up Bethune Street and replace all the sewers to reduce flooding in the downtown has ballooned from $33.9 million to $52.6 million - and the city's going to have to come up with the $18.7-million overrun quickly or risk the loss of partial funding from the federal and provincial governments.

The cost increase is due to factors such as construction cost increases since the city's last estimate in August 2018, according to a new city staff report.

The project's design was 60 per cent done at that time, the report states - now it's 90 per cent done, and it shows additional structural work and upsized sewers, for example.

But there's no option to put the brakes on the project to come up with more money.

That's because the federal and provincial governments each offered $7.9 million in funding toward the project - $15.8 million in total - with the expectation that it would be done by Oct. 31, 2021.

To meet that deadline, says the report, the city must put the project to tender by April 2.

It means the city must find an additional $18,735,900 over this year and next - and city staff has a plan to do that.

The report suggests taking out a series of debentures that would be paid off through development charges, for instance.

It also suggests dipping into reserve funds and using unspent money that was meant for a couple of other projects (an environmental assessment on the Byersville Creek isn't expected done soon after all, for example, and the city has nearly $1.6 million set aside for it).

City councillors will consider this financing plan at a meeting on Monday.

The new $52.6-million estimate is only for the underground sewer work and does not cover the costs of the city's plan to convert Bethune Street into a linear park with features such as cafes and gardens.

The Bethunescape project was launched several years because at that time council decided it didn't want to repave Bethune Street following the sewer replacement so it looks essentially as it does today. Instead, council hired the firm Aecom to come up with a design that makes it look more like a pedestrian mall.

"The Bethunescape work was always contemplated to be a future project," states the new report, without adding exactly when it might start or how much it might cost.

"Future work will develop specific features, detailed designs and cost estimates."

joelle.kovach

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