New dishwasher for community centre in Underwood
By Liz Dadson

Feature

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Kincardine council has agreed to spend $15,989 on a new dishwasher for the community centre in Underwood.

In committee-of-the-whole last night (Sept. 16), recreation director Karen Kieffer said the cost of the machine would come from the community centre reserve fund which currently sits at $45,859.

Kieffer also asked that the purchase be exempted from the municipal purchasing policy so the same model of dishwasher can be bought and installed in the limited space.

"The community centre committee is recommending that a new Hobart machine be purchased to replace the existing Hobart machine," she said. "The new dishwasher will fit into the same spot as the current dishwasher with minimal disruption."

The committee has been happy with the service received from the supplier of the current machine, Williams Food Equipment, so that company was contacted for a quote. To the best of the committee’s knowledge, this is the only company that could accommodate the purchase.

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16/09/2009 10:34 PM

Kieffer noted that the existing machine is constantly breaking down and in need of repair.

"If this purchase went through the formal quotation process, would we be obligated to go with the lowest quote?" asked councillor Kenneth Craig.

Chief administrative officer John deRosenroll said for items of this price, the policy calls for a public tendering/quotation process in order to get the best price for the product. However, in this case, expediency is the order of the day so it should be exempted from the purchasing policy.

Councillor Marsha Leggett said the dishwasher is 30 years old and should be replaced quickly. "That facility is rented just about every day and every weekend," she said. "It's quite an investment. The committee has been working for over a year to find a factory that sells this kind of dishwasher."

Later, in council session, the exemption and the purchase were approved.