New paddocks on the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit: the city of Montreal must increase another $6 million in public funds

The City of Montreal will finally have to extend an additional $6 million for the construction of the new paddocks of the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit, which was sued by the contractor responsible for the work.

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The Société du parc Jean-Drapeau (SPJD) and the contractor Groupe Geyser reached an out-of-court agreement that was ratified behind closed doors by the city’s executive committee last week.

In April 2018, Geyser won a $60 million contract for the construction of the new building which houses the Formula 1 teams, the media and part of the public during the Grand-Prix which takes place every year in the metropolis on the Notre Dame Island.

Cost overruns

But in June 2021, the general contractor claimed more than $10 million more from the City. Geyser argued in particular that the acceleration of the construction site to be able to complete the building in time for the 2019 edition of the Grand-Prix had led to cost overruns.

“The discussions held between the parties during the case and during the mediation sessions brought to light a real risk of shared liability, including that of the SPJD, for the additional costs claimed by Geyser, mainly due to changes in a project context with an immutable deadline”, recognizes the SPJD in a decision-making document that we consulted.

According to Parc Jean-Drapeau, such an out-of-court agreement is a good thing for the City because it will “avoid the costs, inconveniences and uncertainties of a trial”.

Water infiltration

This does not however put an end to the saga of cost overruns of this infrastructure which is used for a private event, but whose construction was entirely financed by public funds.

Indeed, the SPJD admits that “significant problems of water infiltration affect the building […] and the investigations are still ongoing, which are excluded from the settlement [hors cour] “.

Since 2017, more than $91 million in public funds have been invested by the City for various works around the circuit.

To this must be added the annual amount paid by Ottawa, Quebec and Montreal to the organizer Formula One World Championship.

This amount was $20 million this year and will rise to $26 million in 2031.