The bill for the restoration of the city hall of Montreal continues to increase: it will reach 182 million, a new increase revealed Monday, during the meeting of the municipal council.
Posted at 8:06 p.m.
Already, last May, the administration of Mayor Valérie Plante announced cost overruns of 28 million and a bill amounting to 168 million. So we now find ourselves with overruns totaling 42 million.
Originally, the renovation of the town hall was to cost 22.5 million. In 2017, the bill had risen to 88 million, then to 116 million in 2018. The City then established that the project could cost a maximum of 140 million.
These exploding costs worry the opposition at City Hall.
Monday, in city council, the leader of the party Together Montreal, Aref Salem, said he understood that inflation could increase the costs, but he believes that the project was poorly planned.
“Is it going to cost us even more in 2023? he asked.
Émilie Thuillier, building manager on the executive committee, reiterated that the renovation of a heritage building was a complex project, for which it was difficult to find certain craftsmen.
She also insisted on the fact that the renovated town hall will include more spaces accessible to citizens, who will be called upon to make them their own. “For us, it will truly be the heart of civic life,” she said.
Additionally, changes have been made to the plans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We learned lessons from COVID,” said Ms.me Thuillier. The offices have been reorganized differently, because of telework, there have been changes in the conference rooms so that they can operate in hybrid mode. »
Elected officials and municipal employees must return to City Hall in October 2023.