Municipality of Chatham-Kent Council has approved a snow removal and winter maintenance contract, in the amount of $122,707.36 per snow event, to various contractors across the community.
Council voted in favour of the staff recommendations at their Monday, September 9, 2024 meeting.
“To streamline the Municipality’s snow clearing and de-icing obligations and improve system efficiency, representatives from Facilities, Public Works, Parks, Recreation and Cemeteries, and the Public Utilities Commission, along with Legal Services and the Manager of Purchasing and Accounts Payable, developed a comprehensive tender package for snow clearing and de-icing services throughout Chatham-Kent,” stated Michael Irwin, supervisor of building maintenance – north, in a staff report.
“The tender award will cover most municipal properties with parking lots and walkways requiring winter maintenance. It does not include snow clearing of municipal roadways or sidewalks not adjoining listed municipal properties. All sites to be serviced are mapped and grouped into packages by area for proponents to bid on. The tender will result in a three-year contract, with options for the municipality to extend the contract for two additional one-year terms.”
Irwin added the total cost of snow clearing fluctuates considerably each year.
“As a result, administration uses historical expenses to determine the budget required to meet the needs of the snow clearing and de-icing contract,” he wrote.
“The average cost for snow removal under the entire contract is higher than the 2025 budget due to 2022 having significantly more snowfall than typical winter seasons in Chatham-Kent. However, when considering only the averages from 2021 and 2023, the 2025 budget is sufficient to meet the requirements for the winter maintenance contract.”
Irwin added: “The overall price for the new contract came in slightly lower than the previous one, and administration has submitted a business case in the 2025 budget update to appropriately lower the winter maintenance budget line to reflect this change.”
Read the full report, here.
