City council approved a sole-source contract for $500,045 at its meeting Monday to bring the ice plant at the Canada Games Centre up to date.

Toronto’s Cimco Refrigeration was awarded the work that includes replacing the cooling tower for $395,000 and upgrading the chiller for a cost of $120,000. The total amount of $515,000 for the project includes a bit of work the city needs to do.

The administrative report to council says there are no companies in the Yukon that do the type work required with ammonia systems.

To put the city in a position to have the replacement and upgrades completed in a four-week shutdown of the ice-plant next May, council was also required to bring forward the capital expenditures already identified in the 2019-2022 capital expenditure program.

“The city has received a detailed proposal from Cimco to complete the specified replacements and upgrades,” says the administrative report to council.

“The pricing submitted with the Cimco proposal is in line with work of this nature, and the pricing is reasonable based on previous work.”

Richard Graham, the city’s manager of operations, explained in his presentation to council last week that ice plant work is very specialized.

Cimco, he pointed out, maintains and services ice plants in 75 per cent of the arenas in Canada.

Cimco did install the ice plant at the Games Centre originally, and it does provide the service and maintenance for the ice plants at the Takhini Arena and the Mount McIntyre Recreation Centre, he explained.

Graham said Cimco has committed to subcontracting whatever work it can to local companies.

There were concerns expressed by members of council last week and again on Monday regarding general opposition to the practice of sole-sourcing contracts.

“This work is important and to me the important part is the safety involved when we are talking about ammonia and those gases,” Coun. Jan Stick said Monday.

“I would like to see the work done by someone who we have had do the work for years and someone we know that can do it properly and professionally.”

Stick said she understands council does not like to sole-source contracts.

“In this case, I think there are good reasons behind the exception.”