It could be a few months before a final decision on the design for the Island Park bridge is brought forward by Portage City Council. At last night's meeting Councillors accepted AECOM's functional design study report, which outlined several different options. While the report itself was accepted, a decision on just how the structure will look is still up for debate.

The functional design report outlines the original option selected by council --a three-lane, three-arch culvert causeway-- would now cost about $9.7 million once inflation and engineering costs are included. Other options, which include eliminating the arched culverts, one of the three lanes, or both, range in price from $5.7 million to $9.4 million. Council will further discuss the final design during their budget deliberations, with a final selection to be made during that time.

When it comes to funding the project. Transportation Chair Melissa Draycott says they have a few options, including using federal gas tax revenue. However, she notes they also have two grant applications put forward, the first would cover about 50 per cent, while the second would cover two-thirds of the cost. While it's unknown when, and if, those applications will be approved, Draycott says they could play a role in which design Council decides to move forward with.

"We haven't sat down as a Council and had a good conversation about the budget processing on the bridge. I would imagine if it was essentially free money, it would make a difference going forward as to the bridge we put forth. I'm not sure exactly when we hope to hear back if we've successfully acquired the funding, so it could be a timing issue as well."

While many have express concerns over the growing cost of the bridge, Portage Mayor Irvine Ferris says they also need to look at the bigger picture. He says the city's growing active transportation network, and the increasing use of Crescent Lake both in summer and winter need to be factors in addition to the cost of the project. He says he's leaning toward the original plan, which while over budget, would help accommodate the city well into the future.

"My take on it is that whatever gets built will be here for one hundred years plus, long after all of us are gone. The current bridge we have was built in 1929, it's served us fairly well for 86, 87 years. I would like to see something that's built that's going to function well for the community and serve the community's needs, something that looks really good, that we're going to be proud to show off."

The functional design study cost approximately $150,000, with half the cost covered through a provincial grant. However, Draycott notes about $32,000 was left over, which could be used for the environmental act proposal, as well as the required Department of Fisheries and Ocean study before moving forward. The AECOM report indicated construction could start on the bridge in 2017, with the project fully completed in 2019.