Portage la Prairie city council moved to award a wastewater renewal contract to Towle Constructions Ltd. following a perfect score on their proposal.

Councillor Wayne Wall explains why they decided to bring a contract like this forward now.

"Every year the City Engineering Department does an assessment of the infrastructure underground," notes Wall. "So that any repairs that need to be done will get finished before we pave those streets."

He adds the score is based off of the cost of the project, if they'll hire local workers, among other categories. He explains that compared to Towle Construction's perfect score of 100, the other company that submitted a proposal finished with a score of 51.

He notes it would be quite the headache to pave roads, only to have to dig them up for sewer repairs that could've happened before the paving process began. He goes into detail on the expected timelines.

"I think they'll be working right away," says Wall when asked about when the project will begin. "We'll not see it finished until most likely next summer as well."

He adds while it may not be something the city thinks about often, these types of projects are vital to keeping the water available, as well as keeping it safe to drink.