Five years after a consultant said he had no idea LaSalle was a waterfront community, the town is ready to award a general contractor the tender to build the event centre the centrepiece of its Small Coast Waterfront Project.
Town Council could approve giving the project to Windsor-based Vince Ferro Construction for $6.5-million.
It was one of four general contractors that submitted bids before the May 12 deadline. The other estimates ranged from $6.9-million to $6.7-million.
The old Westport Marina building will be renovated into an open space that can host one tennis court, two pickleball courts, and events.
Initially, this part of the project was projected to cost $5.2-million, but the architect, JP Thomson Architects, revised the cost. The town will pay for it through a combination of debt transfers from reserves and gas tax funding. Any further increases in the price will come from internal sources and reallocations of the municipal budget.
An artists rendering of LaSalle's Small Coast Waterfront Experience project. (courtesy of the Town of LaSalle)
Eventually, the larger project will also include historic, leisure, and sports zones, trails, and a new boat launch. A splash pad or fountain that can be converted into an ice rink in the winter is included too. The 65-acre site will celebrate LaSalle's English, French, and Indigenous history.
The consultant's report that spurred the endeavour identified 15 issues to guide growth in Lasalle over the next two decades. The report said stagnant economic growth along the waterfront was holding back development in the town and recommended the town focus on that one area first. It also lauded LaSalle's trail system and town centre.
The event centre could be complete by March or April 2022.