Sun Peaks Mountain Resort Municipality (SPMRM) is seeking an outside consultant to take on the process of reopening the Sun Peaks Community Health Centre.
After five months of negotiations with Dr. Catherine Nowierski, who withdrew her proposal to operate the health centre Feb. 26, SPMRM is back to “ground zero, hour one” Mayor Rob O’Toole told SPIN.
Due to the resources and time needed to quickly reopen the health centre, municipal staff have recommended sourcing a consultant to take on the renewed search for an operator to ensure there is a dedicated team responsible for the process.
“The previous process took up a substantial amount of staff time and resources which has led to the delay and or inability to advance a significant amount of other work and move forward on other critical priorities,” the staff memo to council stated.
O’Toole sought an amendment to the recommendation, directing staff to come back to council with a precise cost and specific consultant before moving forward.
“We can make the decision from there, once we’ve also decided on what the broad scope might be,” he said.
According to the memo, a high-level overview of the consultant’s responsibilities would include revisiting both the Working Group Report and re-posting a Request for Proposals (RFP). This new RFP “could include a draft lease and partnering agreement framework/template for certainty,” the memo stated.
The consultant would also be responsible for distributing the RFP broadly amongst relevant networks. Additional support would include assisting the Sun Peaks Health Association. While the health association has a governance role, it could take on interim or potentially long-term operations until a permanent operator is secured, according to the memo.
As per the municipality’s procurement policy, the municipality could directly solicit suitable consultants and or award the contract to a known consultant.
“This flexibility would allow the municipality to get someone doing the work as soon as possible,” the memo states.
Funds have not been budgeted for a consultant in this process, and staff estimate costs would range between $10,000 and $12,000.
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