Sudbury eyes partnership agreement to move forward with Kingsway project

A Greater Sudbury sign is pictured in this undated photo. (File)

Sudbury -

Surprised by Gateway Casino's decision to pause plans for a new casino, Greater Sudbury is looking to have partners in the Kingsway Entertainment District sign an agreement committing each of them to complete their end of the project.

A report headed to city council this evening said all the partners have agreed to sign the Project Completion Agreement (PCA).

"The partners anticipate that the terms of the PCA can be negotiated over the next three to four months and will include a construction schedule for each of the facilities to coordinate the completion dates," the report said.

"The draft PCA will come before Council in a closed meeting prior to its execution."

The KED, as the project has been dubbed, includes a new $114 million Sudbury arena, a new casino and hotel. Gateway has pressed pause on its plans, due to ongoing legal action. While it has not linked the two publicly, its revenue have also been hard hit by COVID-19 closures.

But the project got a boost Dec. 9, when Genesis Hospitality announced it would be the hotel partner in the project.

Greater Sudbury said the PCA is key to moving forward. Before signing on, however, the city wants to award the design/build contract.

"From the city’s perspective, there is a risk of committing to a PCA without concluding the design-build procurement process and confirming the construction cost of the event centre," the report said.

"Therefore, the PCA will be conditional on the city awarding the design-build contract. The final project budget, which is required to award the design-build contract, is subject to council approval."

If everything proceeds smoothly, the hope is to begin construction by the end of 2022. Read the full report here.