Alberta Infrastructure will issue an invitational Request for Proposal (RFP) for a new project construction manager. Alberta Infrastructure has terminated the services of Graham Construction for the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital project. The new construction manager is expected to be hired by late October 2018.
“This was not a decision that was made easily. I have been clear that this project is a government priority and that’s why we are taking action to construct this hospital as quickly as possible,” said Sandra Jensen, Minister of Infrastructure. “The actions taken today will provide greater certainty around the completion of the new hospital.”
A Notice of Default was issued to Graham in late July, with Jansen stating at the time that: “We have worked closely with the construction manager to resolve the issues but the bottom line is simply that the hospital is not progressing as it should.”
In response to the Notice, Graham filed its own public statement, stating that: “The owner’s recent release of a notice alleging default is unfortunately rife with errors and misstatements, and while Graham has and will continue to meet its contractual obligations while it works under the dispute resolution process, the notification necessitates a response.”
The company did submit a mitigation strategy to the Ministry of Infrastructure in August as requested. However, the government determined that the plan did not provide the certainty that it needed in terms of timeline and budget to complete the project.
As a result of this action, construction activity on the site will be temporarily suspended until the new construction manager is hired and on site. Construction activity is expected to resume as soon as possible after that.
A new construction schedule will be available after a new construction manager is in place. However, the Ministry hopes to have a new construction manager in place by late October and have construction activities resume by late November of 2018.