Board approves Iroquois construction bids and staff outlines districtwide kindergarten‑related construction costs

The Board of Education approved construction bid awards for Iroquois Community School and received a districtwide breakdown of costs tied to implementing full‑day kindergarten during the Sept. 15 meeting.

District staff said bids for Iroquois were opened after the August board meeting and that the total of trade bids was roughly $1.45 million; Pepper Construction reviewed bidders for responsibility and timeline capability. "We want people who can perform and do the work, to the quality that we expect it to be done," a staff member said. Staff presented a project work order and an overall estimate including construction management and contingencies of about $2,206,481.

Board members moved and passed a resolution approving the Iroquois bid results (motion language in the packet cited a bid total of $1,448,654) and the project work order number 2 with the final estimated cost of $2,206,481; roll call recorded the vote as aye from Duckman, Garrett, Gehring, Masa, Morley and Abadam.

Staff described the planned schedule: mobilization was expected to begin the week after approval with site staging beginning as early as Wednesday, Sept. 17, and plans showing "substantial completion" no later than March 17, 2026, with the district hoping to finish earlier if possible. The work is not an addition to the building footprint, staff said; rather, it reclaims and reconfigures existing spaces (locker/shower areas, offices and other spaces) to create kindergarten‑appropriate classrooms and support spaces and to make other long‑deferred facility improvements.

Separately, district estimating staff and Pepper Construction presented a districtwide review of direct kindergarten costs, indirect kindergarten costs (work triggered by kindergarten that is not in kindergarten rooms but is needed for building efficiency or staff accommodations), and other construction. The estimator said approximately 96% of the planned work across sites was either directly or indirectly related to the kindergarten program and about 4% ($1.7 million in the estimate) was categorized as "other" construction.

Board members discussed the trade‑offs of combining necessary facility upgrades with work required for kindergarten and noted the exercise helped surface items such as staff bathrooms, nursing/mothering rooms, and reconfigured specialist/PE spaces that would benefit from being done while crews are mobilized. Staff and the estimating team said the district tried to separate items so the board could see which costs would be strictly kindergarten‑related and which were additional but opportunistic improvements.

The board approved the bid awards and project work order and asked staff to monitor schedules and contractor performance as the work proceeds.