A major culvert replacement project along Highway 39 will be going ahead this year. The city’s portion of funding for the project was approved by Weyburn City Council, albeit at a higher cost than was originally expected.
The issue stems from a culvert failure identified in 2022 by the Ministry of Highways, located under Highway 39 just east of Highway 35.
“The deteriorated condition of the culvert was posing a large risk to the structural integrity of both the highway and city roadway and was identified for a replacement,” explained Renee Cugnet, the City of Weyburn’s Director of Engineering.
Weyburn subsequently entered into a Transportation Partnership Fund Contribution Agreement with the Ministry of Highways. Under this agreement, the Ministry is responsible for coordinating the design, tendering, and construction, while the City is tasked with funding 30% of the portion within the Highway right-of-way and 100% of the portion within City property, which accounts for approximately two-thirds of the total culvert length.
During the design phase in 2024, the Ministry provided the city with a total project cost estimate of $809,000, with the City's share pegged at $600,000 for the 2025 construction year. However, when the Ministry tendered the project in June 2025, the winning bid amounted to $1,257,196.00.
“The increase in the cost of materials and labour for the 3000 mm manhole and flood gate located on the City's portion of the culvert, compared to the original estimate,” Cugnet explained as to the reason for the substantial cost increase.
As a result of the higher winning bid, the City of Weyburn's cost share has now risen to $882,000, representing an overage of $282,000 from the original estimate. Administration recommended to Council that the overage be included in the 2026 budget, and asked for a pre-approval for the amount.
Mayor Jeff Richards acknowledged the unexpected increase when talking with Discover Weyburn after the meeting.
“The projects are necessary and we know that Saskatchewan as a whole and our city no different than a lot of cities,” Richards stated. “Infrastructure deficits are sort of the soup du jour these days. It is what it is.”
“Unfortunately, the province did a little miscalculation on what they thought this was going to cost,” he added. “But they're not alone in that. Those kinds of things happen when you tender out these big projects.”
The Mayor further elaborated on how the city manages such financial challenges, as they are legally required to have a balanced budget every year.
“The City of Weyburn is responsible for eating a couple hundred thousand dollars of that, but we are able to move some of that expense into the 2026 budget, which is very helpful,” Richards explained about the balancing act involved. “So then we start to look at what we can do with an internal loan. We can move if we have capacity in any of our internal reserves, which right now we don't have a whole lot, so we can move that money around to balance our books or simply, unfortunately, we've got to cut something.”
Mayor Richards also noted that while some projects go over budget, others come in under, often keeping the city "around ground zero" financially.
The culvert work is slated to begin this construction season and is expected to continue into the winter, likely concluding by the first quarter of 2026. While some traffic restrictions will be in place on 1st Avenue South during the open-cut portion of the work on the city side, the majority of the new culvert under the highway will be bored, minimizing disruption. The Ministry of Highways remains responsible for all construction coordination and contract management, with the City's role being purely financial.