October 27, 2021 – Today, Ottawa City Council approved additional funding for Ādisōke, the Ottawa Public Library – Library and Archives Canada Joint Facility.
In 2018, City Council approved a budget of $193 million for the facility, which included $104 million for the Ottawa Public Library portion, $71 million for the Library and Archives Canada portion and $18 million for a City-run underground parking facility. The federal government will invest a further $20 million to upgrade the facility to a Net Zero Carbon building.
Through a competitive tender process, PCL Canada submitted the lowest bid to construct the facility. The bid price has resulted in higher costs for all partners, and the Committee approved funding authority of $28 million for the Ottawa Public Library portion, $36 million for the City portion and $10 million for the parking facility. Library and Archives Canada has secured the additional funds for their portion.
The difference between the final bid and the initial estimate can be attributed to the superheated construction market in the National Capital Region and the pandemic. When the project estimate was developed in 2016, it assumed a 10 per cent inflation rate, but construction inflation in Ottawa to mid-point construction is more than 65 per cent.
Given the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on labour and material supply, the project schedule has been modified, to have the official opening one year later in summer 2026.
Construction for Ādisōke is expected to begin in November 2021, once the contract has been awarded.