The Town of Grand Bank has awarded a contract for the demolition of the former South Coast Auto building.
Bennett’s Construction submitted the lowest of three bids at $5,050, plus HST, for the tender.
Brenton’s Industrial put in a bid of $19,833.33, plus HST, while Wally Drake’s Trucking bid $14,490, plus HST, for the contract.
Mayor Rex Matthews was surprised at the disparity between the submissions, but town manager Wayne Bolt assured him the successful bid includes the scope of work the town needs done.
“That’s a major discrepancy,” Matthews said during council’s Oct. 15 meeting.
The Town of Grand Bank acquired the building, located at 8 Church St., due to taxes owing on the property.
The town’s downtown and waterfront re-development plan calls for the vacant lot to be turned into a parking area.
The town will have to pay the costs to dispose of the waste from the demolition up front, but Bolt indicated most of that will be recouped through the redevelopment project.
The federal and provincial governments have allocated over $870,000 for the first stage of the project, which the town was initially hoping would be completed this year. It has since been delayed until next spring at the earliest, however.
