Jan 16, 2015 4 min read

CARMICHAELS – Carmichaels Area School Board Thursday approved the scope of work for the elementary renovation project, the start of which, the board agreed, will be postponed for a year.

Kevin Hayes and Rob Rensi of the Hayes Design Group, the project architect, reviewed the work that will be completed as part of the project, which is estimated to cost $3.5 million.

The work will include replacement of the roof, exterior doors and classroom finishes, mechanical and electrical upgrades, installation of LED lighting and upgrades to the restrooms to make them compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The elementary school, which was constructed in 1990, is well-built and was constructed with good materials, Hayes said. Work that will be done will involve replacing items that should be replaced because they are nearing the end of their useful lives, he said.

The architects provided the board with a list of “deduct alternates,” work that can be removed from the project scope if the base bids come in higher than estimated as well as a list of add-on alternates, work that can be added if base bids are lower than projected.

One of the add-ons the board insisted be included in the base bid was the construction of a secure entrance. The entrance would be configured in such a way that anyone entering the school would first have to pass through the office.

The board decided to push the start of the elementary project back a year because of the logistics of having two renovation projects, the elementary renovation and the junior-senior high renovation, going on at one time.

If the two projects were being done simultaneously, it would be difficult for the custodial staff to move classrooms around to accommodate the work, Superintendent John Menhart said.

It also would create a problem to have contractors for both the elementary and junior-senior high renovations on-site at the same time, he said.

The elementary school project was to begin in June. The start date will be pushed back to June 2016 or a little sooner, if areas of the school can be opened up for work, Menhart said.

Work is currently ongoing with the junior-senior high school renovation and is about 68 percent completed.

Work on the junior high is expected to be finished by the end of March, then renovations will begin in the senior high. The entire junior-senior high renovation is expected to be completed by Aug. 18.

Hayes proposed bidding the elementary project in November and awarding contracts in December. The district could possibly see lower bids if work can begin in April or May, prior to the start of the normal construction season, he said.

The board approved several change orders for the junior-senior high renovation. In his report, Hayes noted the district spent about half the contingency money set aside for change orders.

Tom Allen of ACS, the construction manager, later said about $427,000 has been spent on change orders, which “so far, is pretty good.”

Contractors have worked through most of the structural issues and problems that are only revealed after work begins and as the project enters the finishing stages change orders should begin to decrease, he said.

The board voted to submit Planning and Construction Workbook, PlanCon, parts D and E for the elementary project to the state, which is part of the process of receiving reimbursement for the project.

In other business, Menhart reported staff continues to investigate the possibility of changing from a junior high to a middle school arrangement.

This would involve moving sixth-grade classes from the elementary to the now junior-senior high. Additional space in the junior-senior high will be created by the renovations.

The move also will allow the district to offer a pre-school program in the elementary.

The board also approved a resolution agreeing not to increase taxes this year by more than what is permitted by the state index established by the Taxpayers Relief Act.

The maximum amount the district is permitted to raise property taxes without exceeding the state index is about 0.65 of a mill, business manager Amy Todd said.