Staff Report #10
August 31, 2026
To All Commissioners
Re: Contract Award – Facility Consultant for 450 Highbury Facility Rebuild
Recommendation
That the Commission:
- APPROVE a contract award for consulting services relating to the Highbury Facility Rebuild Project to Arcadis Professional Services Inc. at a cost of $4.343 million covering the project review, facility design and construction documents phases of the project; and
- DIRECT Administration to finalize a contract with Arcadis Professional Services Inc. based on the scope outlined in the request for qualification and the bid submission.
Background
Project History
At the February 27, 2019 meeting, the Commission approved in principle the Strategic Assessment of LTC Facility Needs and Path Forward report and directed Administration to utilize the Path Forward as input into the preparation of multi-year Operating and Capital budgets covering the period 2020-2023. The report was prepared in light of the then-approved BRT corridors coupled with the growth plans for the remainder of the conventional service, which would result in the eventual need for additional bus maintenance and storage space. The Highbury Facility project was placed on the Commission’s 10 year Capital Budget program as a place holder noting at the time there were no available sources of funding identified.
The Federal Budget 2022 made changes to the schedules for both the submission and completion of projects under the ICIP-PTS program. The previous submission deadline of March 28, 2024 was accelerated to March 31, 2023, while the deadline for project completion was extended from October 2027 to October 2033. As a result, civic Administration recommended reallocating London’s remaining ICIP-PTS funding to the construction of the new LTC Highbury Avenue Facility as this project could meet both the revised submission and construction schedules. On August 2, 2022, Municipal Council approved the following:
That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Finance Supports and the Deputy City Manager, Environment and Infrastructure Civic Administration BE DIRECTED to work with London Transit Commission staff to develop a joint application to the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program Public Transit Stream (ICIP-PTS) for a new LTC facility on Highbury Avenue to accommodate transit service growth and the conversion of the LTC fleet to zero-emission buses.
In response to this direction, Administration retained the consultant that completed the original Facility Assessment to update the document to include consideration for the transition to a zero-emission bus fleet as well as to provide a more comprehensive costing estimate that could be utilized for the funding application.
At the meeting of December 13, 2022, Municipal Council approved the following:
That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Finance Supports and the Deputy City Manager, Environment and Infrastructure with the concurrence of the General Manager, London Transit Commission Civic Administration
- BE DIRECTED to submit London Transit Commission (LTC) Highbury Avenue Facility Demolition and Rebuild – Project 1 to the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program Public Transit Stream (ICIP-PTS);
- The budget for the project BE APPROVED in accordance with the Source of Financing Report attached hereto as Appendix “A”; and,
- Civic Administration BE AUTHORIZED to carry out all budget adjustments required to establish the budget for the LTC Highbury Avenue Facility Demolition and Rebuild.
Subsequent to this approval, the Business Case was submitted to the Province of Ontario for approval, after which it would be forwarded to the Government of Canada for approval.
Given the available funding was less than the projected project cost, the project was split into two, and Project 1 was submitted for consideration under the ICIP-PTS funding. This project included the following six phases:
- Phase I – Demolish building and tent at the south end of the property
- Phase II – Build a maintenance area, administration offices and employee parking
- Phase III – Demolish east part of existing bus garage
- Phase IV – Build new service lanes and part of new bus garage
- Phase V – Demolish existing service lanes and administrative offices
- Phase VI – Clean up existing maintenance bay to store buses
The detailed cost estimates for Project 1 are set out in the table below:
Highbury Facility Project 1 Cost Estimates
| Project Component | Cost (millions) |
| 1. Demolition and Construction costs – Phases I-IV | $ 173.0 |
| 2. Design Fees | 12.0 |
| 3. Demolition and construction costs – Phases V-VI | 5.0 |
| 4. Conversion of maintenance area to storage and contingency | 4.5 |
| 5. Temporary site for bus and employee parking (including site prep) | 4.0 |
| 6. Shuttle operating costs (2 years) | 1.0 |
| Total | $ 199.5 |
Completion of Project 1 would result in an improved maintenance operation for all buses at the Highbury facility, and when complete, would have a comparable bus storage space to today. While there is some newly built bus storage associated with this Project, it is limited to 50 buses, and continued transition to zero emission buses will be dependant upon completing Project 2, the estimated costs of which are set out in the table below.
Highbury Facility Project 2 Cost Estimates
| Project Component | Cost (millions) |
| 1. Building Cost Phase 7 | $ 92.0 |
| 2. Design Fees | 6.0 |
| 3. Escalation and Phasing (Dependant upon project timing) | 30.0 |
| 5. Temporary site for bus and employee parking (including site prep) | 2.5 |
| 6. Shuttle operating costs (2 years) | 0.5 |
| Total | $ 131.0 |
The primary component of this Project is the demolition of the remainder of the old Highbury facility and the rebuild of the remaining bus storage. There is currently no associated source of funding for Project 2. The one cost element that has not been incorporated into this business case and related costing is any site remediation that may be required as demolition and reconstruction occur. These impacts are anticipated to occur during Project 2 given the current understanding of where any soil contamination may be located on the site.
London Transit Administration worked with civic Administration to respond to all questions regarding the application, and final approval for the project was confirmed in late 2024.
Project Status
With funding approval secured, the next step in the process was to retain a consulting firm that would undertake the required detailed design of the new facility and prepare the documents required to issue the construction tender. A request for proposal was issued in August 2025 and subsequently cancelled due to a lack of clarity in the scope and the resulting influx of questions. Administration reviewed the questions raised during this process and incorporated a number of adjustments into the subsequent process, which would be a two-stage request for qualification.
The first, and most important phase in the scope of work is to undertake a review of the current plan in order to ensure that the approach is still considered achievable while continuing to operate from the facility during all periods of construction. This step was deemed to be required due to the significant operational changes that now directly align with the facility construction period which were not considered to be conflicts when the original plan was prepared in 2019. The launch of the two rapid transit corridors, and the associated increase in bus fleet (articulated buses), coupled with the zero-emission bus pilot program will place increased pressure on the two facilities in terms of servicing and maintaining buses and ensuring operations are not negatively impacted. As such, the scope for the request for qualification was expanded to include an initial review of the plan to ensure feasibility.
Further complicating this project is the fact that the funding secured is not anticipated to cover the entire project, and as such, the project must be able to proceed to a point that leaves the remaining facility usable until such time as the remaining funding can be secured to finish the project. This issue will also be a key consideration in the review phase of the contract. The project scope was broken into the following phases:
- Phase 1 – Review of Current Plan
- Phase 2 – Facility Design
- Phase 3 – Construction Documents
- Phase 4 – Construction Procurement
- Phase 5 – Construction Oversight
- Phase 6 – Post Construction
A request for qualification was released in December 2025, with the first stage closing in February. A total of nine bids were received in the first stage, and four proponents were selected based on evaluation criteria to move to the second stage, which closed in July 2026. Proposals were evaluated based on project understanding and approach, experience of the project manager, experience of the support staff, experience with similar projects, cost controls, and price. The scores for the four proponents who completed the second stage are set out in the table below, noting the highest score based on the evaluation matrix was 70 points.
Highbury Facility RFQ – Stage 2 Evaluation
| Bidder | Score |
| Arcadis Professional Services Inc. | 65.4 |
| AECOM Canada ULC | 63.1 |
| Stantec Architecture Limited | 55.1 |
| R.V. Anderson Associates Limited | 44.5 |
Due to the span of this project, the pricing submission form was broken into two sections. Bidders were asked to provide the total estimated hours and total project cost for each of the first three phases of the project, and then provide an estimated number of hours that would be allocated to the remaining three phases. In addition, bidders were asked to provide the percentage increase to quoted hourly rates in each of the years 2028 through 2031.
The report recommendation calls for the award of a contract to Arcadis Professional Services Inc. at a cost of $4.343 million which covers the first three phases of the project. The contract will also include the estimated hours associated with each of the remaining phases, noting that prior to the initiation of each, the parties will review the scope and determine whether adjustments are required and will agree on same. Based on the bid submission, the estimated hours associated with the final three phases of the project equates to an additional $3.3 million in fees. This approach allows for the required flexibility associated with the revised approach to include the initial reassessment of the plan.
Subsequent to Commission approval, Administration will work to finalize the contract with Arcadis Professional Services Inc. and initiate the first phase of the project. Regular project updates will be provided to the Commission as appropriate going forward.
Recommended by:
Craig Morneau, Director of Fleet & Facilities
Mike Gregor, Director of Finance
Concurred in by:
Kelly S. Paleczny, General Manager