Ontario Construction News staff writer
The City of Hamilton’s Office of the Auditor General (OAG) has finished an audit of the Southcote Road capital project contract.
The project was awarded in August 2022 for $13.32 million and wrapped up in 2024 with a total cost of $15.82 million, which is an increase of $2.5 million, or 19 per cent, according to the City of Hamilton’s Office of the Auditor General (OAG).
The audit revealed that governance and oversight processes were informal and not fully developed, leading to issues with scope management, change management, and contingency planning.
Poor budget monitoring and job-cost reporting also restricted the city’s ability to pinpoint and react to rising expenses. The review found major communication gaps within Public Works and between that department and Procurement, which caused a preventable mistake during tendering.
“While the project was completed, our audit found gaps in early planning, change management, documentation and financial tracking that made the work more complex and contributed to higher costs,” Auditor General Charles Brown said.
“Management has already taken steps to strengthen how infrastructure projects are delivered, and these recommendations are meant to support continued progress toward clearer, more consistent project oversight.”
The Southcote Road project involved reconstruction and underground infrastructure servicing along the Southcote Road-Garner Road corridor to Highway 403 in Ancaster. The work covered about 1.5 kilometres and included road construction, watermain installation, and stormwater infrastructure.
City management requested this independent review to look at how the project evolved and evaluate if it was carried out in a way that provided value for money.
The audit report is accessible through the city’s meeting agenda and supporting documents.
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