A lone bid for upgrades at the intersection of Old Okanagan Highway and Butt Road raised concern at West Kelowna Council’s May 13 meeting.
The $4.35-million project includes the addition of new left-turn lanes in all directions, a right-turn lane heading west on Butt Road, a proper sidewalk to replace the current uneven asphalt path and dedicated bike lanes.
Crews will also replace aging water pipes and improve drainage on the southwest corner, where past flooding from Westbank Creek has caused damage.
BC General Contracting was the only company to submit a bid.
Deputy Director of Engineering Rob Hillis said the project drew a lot of interest on the city’s bids and tender website.
“So we were fairly surprised that we actually only received one bid with the amount of questions we had up until the closing date,” he added.
Hillis said preliminary feedback indicated the project’s complexity may have discouraged other contractors.
“There were multiple municipalities and jurisdictions involved.”
The intersection is jointly managed by the City of West Kelowna, Westbank First Nation (WFN), and the Ministry of Transportation and Transit (MOTT).
BC General’s bid for the intersection portion alone came in at $3.24 million—well over the city’s $2.75 million budget.
Project lead Trevor Paille also expressed surprise that more bids didn’t come in.
“Since we saw so much competitive process during the question (bid) period, we expect this (budget) is accurate to reflect the cost of this work.”
Councillor Rick de Jong noted the single-bid scenario was becoming a pattern.
“That isn’t a healthy thing to see on a regular basis, and we’ve had a few of them. So I take heart that staff has already commented.”
Staff now plan to work with a consultant and gather contractor feedback on the city's bid and tender process.
The MOTT is contributing $600,000 on behalf of WFN to the project. Coun. Garrett Millsap pointed out that there was a previous discussion of a 25 per cent contribution from WFN.
“The $600,000 equates to about 13 per cent,” he said. “Are we going to be looking to them for more contribution to get them up to that 25 per cent?”
Staff clarified that the province and WFN were asked only to help cover costs related to the intersection—not underground infrastructure upgrades.
This intersection is the only signalized one in West Kelowna under full city management—and it has the highest collision costs in the municipality, according to a staff report.
Council unanimously approved BC General’s bid.
Construction could begin as early as the end of May, with completion expected in fall 2025. At least one full closure of the intersection—lasting several weeks—is planned to allow for utility replacements.
