The Modellers Pond redevelopment will not be completed on time, rising costs have forced council to scale-back the project and more than $1 million of the planned budget has not yet been spent due to delays.
In a January-March 2022 quarterly report presented to Nelson City Council’s community and recreation committee last week, the shortfall in capital expenditure of $1.1m was put down to delays due to Covid-19 and the weather.
The report stated that, due to cost increases, some features of the design have been removed and others reduced.
Group manager community services Andrew White says, like many projects, the Modellers Pond Park is facing increases to material costs due to Covid-19.
“Officers have made small changes to the detailed design, but the park will not be noticeably different from the scheme that was originally proposed.”
The design that was put to the public was “relatively simple”, and a more detailed design had since been developed.
It was elements from this detailed design that had been downscaled or removed.
When questioned on what design elements had been removed, an example was provided of an area that was originally planned to be concreted but will now be grass.
To explain what had been ‘scaled back’, Andrew used an example of some of the street furniture being scaled back to a slightly less expensive design.
“When costs are increasing, it makes sense to consider where savings can be made,” Andrew says.
The report also stated that the final cost of the project is expected to exceed the $2.3 million budget by approximately 5 per cent.
“We have not exceeded the project’s contingencies so far, but the landscaping work is only about halfway through,” Andrew says.
“We have alerted the council to the potential of costs exceeding budget as a precaution.”
The report said that the entire site was closed down due to Covid-19 infections, meaning the project will not be completed by the end of June, as first thought.
“Covid-19 and the heavy, consistent rain has delayed the project end date, which is why the project is currently ‘behind budget’.
“However, with better weather forecast work is ongoing and we are looking forward to opening a fantastic new park for Nelson,” he says.
