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The government of Newfoundland and Labrador spent about $2.6 million on a new K-12 school in Cartwright before putting the project on hold earlier this week.
The main contract for the development was estimated at $38.4 million at the time it was awarded to JMJ Holdings Limited, back in July 2025.
Residents watched as site clearing began.
That $2.6 million was spent then-to-now, according to an emailed response to questions provided to Radio-Canada by a communications staff member for the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure. The project stood less than six per cent complete.
Infrastructure Minister Barry Petten said it was clear the original estimates weren’t standing.
“The $38 million was out the door now,” he told CBC Radio’s Labrador Morning.
The best estimate provided by government was for the cost to be $50 million. For context, at the time the project was announced, the province’s entire budget for the year for advancing work on four new schools was $55.5 million.
Petten said the costs for the Cartwright school were running higher for several reasons, including unexpected geotechnical issues.
In its own statement Thursday, JMJ acknowledged there were issues arising.
“During construction, JMJ learned that the site for the Cartwright school had substantial issues that would have required costly remediation work,” reads the statement.
The costs to date for the province do not include any potential settlement publicly requested by the general contractor, for itself and subcontractors.
Pursuing ‘more economic alternative’
Petten said he thinks the halt to construction and a new plan will be the best decision financially in the long run.
“At the end of the day we’ll be in a much better financial situation as a result of doing this. And we can proceed at a much more economic alternative and we’ll still accomplish the same goal and we’ll save the treasury a lot of money,” Petten said.
Education Minister Paul Dinn was asked about the Cartwright school construction and what a changing timeline for new or renewed facilities means for children’s education.
“All I can say is that it’s very much on our radar and we’re going to work forward, to come up with a solution here that serves the residents and gives their children an opportunity to succeed,” he told CBC Radio’s The St. John’s Morning Show on Friday.
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