Lindsay Construction has filed a lawsuit against the City of St. John’s, claiming it is owed a $500,000 incentive payment tied to its work building a track, turf field and training centre ahead of the 2025 Canada Summer Games.
According to a statement of claim filed in the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, Lindsay Construction entered into a contract with the city in April 2023 worth $31,998,750 including HST to build the facility, now known as the Fortis Canada Games Complex. The $34-million complex includes a 400-metre, eight-lane track, FIFA-quality soccer turf and an indoor training facility for amateur sport. The city had awarded Lindsay Construction the design-build contract in May 2023.
The company alleges the contract included financial incentives for meeting certain deadlines, including a bonus of $500,000 for completing the track, field and turf by Sept. 30, 2024. Lindsay Construction says it met that milestone, but the city has refused to pay the incentive.
Dispute Over What Counts as Complete
The lawsuit states the milestone covered three elements: the track, the grass field at the centre of the track, and the artificial soccer turf. Lindsay Construction says the track and artificial turf, which it says made up 97.6 per cent of the milestone’s scope, were substantially completed before the deadline, with completion certificates issued on Sept. 26, 2024 for both.
For the grass field, the company says sod installation began Sept. 16, 2024, with about a third laid by Sept. 23. It says rain in late September prevented it from finishing the job, though the necessary sod was on site by Sept. 30.
Lindsay Construction also alleges that design review delays and change orders requested by the city affected the track and artificial soccer field, and that it still met the milestone despite those delays, which it says were caused solely by the city and amounted to more than a week.
Negotiations Fail, Company Seeks Damages
The company says that despite roughly two years of attempts to negotiate a resolution, it has not received the incentive payment and has “suffered significant losses and damages” as a result. Lindsay Construction is seeking the $500,000 plus interest, legal costs and any other relief the court deems appropriate.
As of Thursday morning, no statement of defence had been filed by the city. Both the City of St. John’s and the plaintiff’s lawyer, James MacNeil of BoyneClarke, declined to comment on the matter. None of the claims have been proven in court.
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