During my visit to a municipal council meeting earlier this year, the Mayor indicated that citizens would soon have the opportunity to visit the renovated municipal offices.
To clarify, these are the same offices, following the renovation work.
Perhaps I simply missed the visit. What about you? Have you had the opportunity to visit all of the renovated municipal offices?
The renovation of North Hatley’s Town Hall, located at 3125 Capelton Road, was intended, among other things, to improve the building’s energy efficiency.
However, the project has dragged on, and its cost is no longer limited to the construction contract itself.
Construction work, cost overruns, engineering, moving expenses, temporary office rentals, heating, electricity and eventually moving back: how much has this renovation really cost the taxpayers of North Hatley?
Based on the amounts currently available and a clearly identified estimate of relocation costs, the bill could already be more than $430,000.
$286,607 for the Renovation Contract
On January 12, 2026, a contract for $286,607 was awarded for the renovation work at Town Hall.
View the official notice on SEAO
This amount provides the initial basis for assessing the cost of the project.
But the bill quickly increases.
$53,177.22 in Cost Overruns
On March 2, 2026, a cost overrun of $53,177.22 was identified and authorized.
This represents an increase of approximately 18.6% compared with the original $286,607 contract.
The construction bill therefore rises to:
$286,607 + $53,177.22 = $339,784.22
In other words, even before considering professional fees and employee relocation costs, the identified construction expenses already amount to nearly $340,000.
View the March 2, 2026 municipal bulletin
An Additional $13,400 in Engineering
The project also includes professional fees.
On July 7, 2025, the municipal council awarded a $13,400 contract to Groupe Farley Experts-Conseil for mechanical and electrical engineering services.
The mandate included work related to improving the building’s energy efficiency.
View the July 7, 2025 council minutes
Adding only this engineering mandate to the construction costs:
$339,784.22 + $13,400 = $353,184.22
We therefore reach $353,184.22 in identified expenses, before even calculating the costs associated with relocating municipal employees and operating temporary offices.
The Overlooked Cost: Temporary Offices
While the project was underway, the municipal administration had to leave Town Hall.
The Info Village – Winter 2024-2025 municipal newsletter indicates that municipal services had been relocated to Rivière Road.
View Info Village – Winter 2024-2025
The temporary relocation was apparently not short-lived.
In October 2025, an official election notice from the Municipality still listed 330 Rivière Road as the address where citizens could meet with the municipal administration.
This temporary relocation must also be considered when calculating the overall cost of the project.
How Much Does This Relocation Cost?
We do not currently have access to the municipal lease or to all electricity and heating invoices.
It is therefore important to clearly distinguish between documented expenses and estimates.
To establish a reasonable order of magnitude, let us use the following assumptions:
| Expense | Estimate |
|---|---|
| Rent | $3,000 / month |
| Heating and electricity | $500 / month |
| Monthly total | $3,500 / month |
Each month spent in the temporary offices would therefore represent approximately $3,500.
Over a hypothetical period of 20 months:
$3,500 × 20 months = $70,000
Employees, furniture, computer equipment, files and other administrative equipment also have to be moved.
Using an estimate of:
$5,000 for the initial move
and
$5,000 for the move back and reinstallation at Town Hall
we arrive at approximately:
$70,000 + $10,000 = $80,000
This is an estimate, not an amount confirmed by the Municipality.
The actual cost could be lower or higher. Publishing the lease, energy bills and moving expenses would make it possible to determine the exact amount.
An Estimated Bill of More Than $433,000
Let’s now add the known amounts and the estimates.
| Expense | Amount |
|---|---|
| Renovation contract | $286,607.00 |
| Cost overrun | $53,177.22 |
| Mechanical and electrical engineering | $13,400.00 |
| Documented subtotal | $353,184.22 |
| Temporary offices – estimated 20 months | $70,000.00 |
| Initial move – estimate | $5,000.00 |
| Move back – estimate | $5,000.00 |
| ESTIMATED TOTAL | $433,184.22 |
Based on these assumptions, the project could therefore already represent a bill of approximately:
$433,000
And this estimate could continue to increase as long as the administration remains in its temporary offices.
Each additional month represents approximately $3,500 according to our assumption.
Project Timeline
September 2024
The municipal council authorizes the renovation work at Town Hall.
Winter 2024-2025
The Info Village municipal newsletter indicates that municipal services have been relocated to Rivière Road.
Spring 2025
The municipal administration remains relocated while the work continues.
Summer 2025
Work is carried out on the building.
July 7, 2025
A $13,400 contract is awarded for mechanical and electrical engineering services.
December 12, 2025
The tendering process for the work officially continues.
January 12, 2026
A $286,607 contract is awarded for the renovation work.
March 2, 2026
A $53,177.22 cost overrun is authorized.
September 2026
The Municipality’s website still indicates that municipal offices are temporarily located at 330 Rivière Road.
As of today, the temporary office address can still be found on Google Maps.
[Image]
From a $286,607 Contract to a Potential Bill of More Than $430,000
This is probably the best way to understand the issue.
When a citizen looks at the renovation contract, they see an amount of:
$286,607
But this amount alone does not reveal the true cost of the project.
Adding the cost overrun and the engineering mandate we identified brings the total to:
$353,184.22
Adding an estimate for the costs associated with approximately twenty months of relocation and two moves brings the total to:
approximately $433,184
That would represent approximately $146,577 more than the $286,607 renovation contract, or a difference of approximately 51%.
However, this comparison does not mean that the contract itself experienced a 51% cost overrun. Rather, it illustrates the difference between the construction contract amount and a broader estimate of the project’s overall cost, including other expenses.
And There May Still Be Missing Expenses
Even this $433,000 estimate does not necessarily mean that we know the final bill.
Other expenses may have been incurred:
architectural fees or other professional services, preparation of plans and specifications, work carried out before the main contract, additional modifications, permits, equipment, preparation of the temporary offices, telecommunications, storage or other expenses directly attributable to the project.
These expenses should be verified before establishing a definitive final cost.
What Is the Floor Area of Town Hall?
Another piece of information would help put the bill into perspective: the floor area of the renovated building.
Town Hall is located at 3125 Capelton Road. Interestingly, I am unable to access the assessment roll information for this building. It does not appear to be available; you can check for yourself here.
[Image]
For now, we have not found sufficiently reliable information in the public documents reviewed to calculate the renovation cost per square foot.
This information should normally be obtainable from the assessment roll, building plans, or plans and specifications prepared as part of the tendering process.
Once the floor area is known, it will be possible to calculate:
construction cost ÷ floor area = renovation cost per square foot
and compare the result with renovation projects involving similar buildings.
Citizens Should Be Able to Know the Final Bill
This is not about questioning the need to maintain or renovate a municipal building.
The question is rather how much the project will have actually cost once all expenses have been added together.
To provide a complete answer, the Municipality could simply publish a report including:
the original project budget, the final contract amount, all extras and cost overruns, professional fees, the cost of the temporary lease, energy expenses, moving and relocation costs, and the expected date of return to 3125 Capelton Road.
This would allow citizens to distinguish confirmed amounts from estimates and finally understand the total cost of renovating their Town Hall.
The Numbers to Remember
$286,607 — renovation contract
+$53,177.22 — cost overrun
+$13,400 — engineering
=$353,184.22 in identified expenses
Then, according to our assumption:
+ approximately $80,000 — temporary offices and moving expenses
≈ $433,184 — current overall estimate
This estimate will be updated once the actual costs of the lease, energy, moving expenses and other costs associated with the project become available.
The Renovations Were Probably Necessary
That said, I have absolutely no doubt that the renovation of Town Hall was necessary. The purpose here is simply to question and assess the management of public finances, particularly the evolution of costs and how the project was managed.
What is nevertheless surprising is that a $7,000 cost overrun for preparing the tennis courts was passed directly on to citizens, including through the imposition of a $50 membership fee for both adults and children.
According to some accounts, the Municipality ultimately decided to eliminate these fees.
Two sets of rules? When a municipal project exceeds its budget, citizens should be able to understand why and who ultimately bears the cost. That is precisely the kind of question that rigorous oversight of public finances should make it possible to ask.
With that, I’ll leave you to reflect on it.
