Edmonton: TransEd Partners consortium awarded Valley Line LRT Stage 1 project TransEd Partners - a consortium in- cluding EllisDon, Bechtel, Bombardier and Fengate Capital Management - has achieved financial close on the Valley Line LRT Stage 1 project. The city se- lected TransEd Partners in late Novem- ber as the preferred proponent to design, build, finance, operate, maintain and supply vehicles for the project, Ellis- Don said in a news release. The Valley Line LRT Stage 1 project is a Public-Private Partnership (P3) that in- cludes a five-year design-build stage and a 30-year operation and maintenance (O&M) term. The contract is valued at $1.8 billion in net present value. The LRT project is a significant part of the City of Edmonton’s transportation plan. The multi-phased, 27 km urban route will ultimately create 25 new stops and three stations, serving an estimated 100,000 daily commuters. The line will run southeast to west from Mill Woods to Lewis Farms, crossing through Ed- monton’s downtown core. Stage 1 encompasses 13.1 km with 11 stops including an additional two- storey station between Mill Woods and 102 St., connecting commuters with the Capital Line and Metro Line at Churchill Station. The project is currently on schedule for construction to begin in 2016. “This is a good day for the City of Ed- monton,” said Stephen Damp, EllisDon’s executive vice president. “We are ex- cited to get started and to deliver a world class system.” EllisDon is currently undertaking a number of major transportation related infrastructure projects across Canada. This includes the Ottawa Confederation Line LRT, Eglinton Crosstown LRT and the York Viva Bus Rapid Transit Expan- sion. SASKATCHEWAN Building Permits Update Saskatchewan building permits reached $165.1 million in December, an increase of 11 per cent from $148.7 mil- lion in November and nearly 18 per cent over the $140 million in permits issued in December 2015, Statistics Canada has reported. However, December permits are down about half from $325.6 million in October 2015, the federal agency said, as reported in the Regina Leader-Post. Residential building permits declined 12.3 per cent to $76 million in December from $89.6 million in November. Saskatchewan was the only province to see a decrease in residential construc- tion permits during the period, the report said. Non-residential construction permits increased nearly 44 per cent to $89.1 million in December from $62.1 million in November. However, this represented a sharp decline from the $250.7 million in permits issued in October 2015. Construction of the Remai Modern in Saskatoon makes progress despite budget overruns CBC TV has reported that the Remai Modern gallery project should be com- pleted by the fall of 2016, with costs ex- pected to be between $2.5 and $4.5 million greater than the approved budget of $84.6 million, according to Saska- toon’s standing policy committee on en- vironment, utilities and corporate services. EllisDon is building the $10 million structure. “The report states that opportunities for funding the shortfall are currently being explored to complete the project,” CBC says. “This includes reducing the amounts spent on furniture, fixtures and equipment needed to open the gallery.” Options for private funding are also being discussed. The building is sched- uled to open in early 2017. It was origi- nally scheduled to be open this year. MANITOBA BuildForce Canada projects requirement for 12,000 tradespeople in next decade BuildForce Canada projects that more than 12,000 more tradespeople will be needed over the next 10 years to fill va- cancies within the province’s booming construction industry. The industry led organization which compiles labour market data and analy- sis for Canada’s construction industry, says that as many as 4,000 workers will be needed to fill new positions expected to be created as a result of the ongoing construction boom. In addition, up to 8,200 others will be required to replace retiring baby boom era workers, it added. “The local construction industry is benefiting from Manitoba’s more diverse economy. From power line work to homebuilding and renovation, there are opportunities for skilled tradespeople in construction,” says BuildForce executive director Rosemary Sparks. “With more than 20 per cent of the construction workforce retiring this decade, employers can’t afford to ease up on recruitment,” Sparks added. “Hir- ing more young people remains an in- dustry priority.” In its 2016-2025 Construction and Maintenance Looking Forward forecast report, BuildForce says Manitoba’s 10- year construction expansion isn’t ex- pected to peak until sometime in 2018. “A gradual rise in commercial and in- dustrial building construction and grow- ing demand for maintenance work also creates new jobs in almost every year of the scenario,” the report says. It predicts up to 2,600 new jobs will be added over the next 10 years on the non-residential side of the industry, and up to 1,500 on the residential side over the next few years. The Canadian Design and Construction Report — March 2016 – 19