Sarjeant Gallery redevelopment project director Gaye Batty (right) with Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall. Photo / Bevan Conley
Sarjeant Gallery redevelopment project director Gaye Batty (right) with Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall. Photo / Bevan Conley
If you thought reports about the cost of the Sarjeant Gallery redevelopment were a little vague you were right - and there is a reason.
The full amount of money raised cannot be revealed to the public because it would tell contractors how much there is in reserve for contingencies.
Any big building project like this one will have "inevitable" variations, project manager Gaye Batty said.
"The value of the contingency cannot ever be published – doing so would give the contractor an advantage and could drive up the price of unforeseen variation items which get paid from the contingency sum."
Revealing the total amount of money available would be like negotiating to buy a house and telling the vendor how much money you have in reserve, she said.
Contractors at work on the 100-year-old matai floorboards under the dome at the Sarjeant Gallery. Photo / File
The $49,329,681 the project has been costed at is fully funded. The costs are $20,080,660 for the Te Pataka extension and $21,968,851 to strengthen and refurbish the original building.
Added to that are $943,000 for landscaping and external work, $5,687,170 for professional, consultancy and project management services, consenting fees and insurances and $650,000 for fit-out and furniture.
The money raised so far to pay for the project is $23.6 million from the Provincial Growth Fund, $6.8m from the Department of Internal Affairs/Lotteries, $10m from the Ministry of Culture and Heritage and $5m from Whanganui District Council.
Private funders have advanced the rest, and Batty will not reveal the final total because it would tell the contractors how much there is in reserve to pay for unforeseen costs.
Whanganui District Council has agreed to pay for any extras the reserve does not stretch to, chief financial officer Mike Fermor said. But Batty does not expect there to be any.
In fact, she said even the full $5m the council has committed may not be needed. It will not be drawn down until the end of the project.
"At the end of the project, if the total value of the approved variations exceeds the contingency, council will be asked to underwrite the extra cost but there is no concern at this stage of the project that there will be any need to do so."
Extra costs are being reported along the way, and so far there has only been $228,000 that will become a contingency.
"All expenditure from the contingency sum is tracked and reported separately to council, which allows for a no surprises approach as the project progresses."
