Board approves Phase 2A and 2B change orders; requests clearer tracking of allowances and change‑order budgets

The Hyde Park Central School District Board approved capital project change orders for Phase 2A (Violet Avenue) and Phase 2B (Haviland and Ralph R. Smith) and asked staff and the construction manager to present clearer, board‑friendly tracking of allowances, change orders and remaining contingency funds.

At the meeting the board moved and carried motions to approve the change orders for both Phase 2A and Phase 2B. Board members asked for better clarity about the relationship between the allowances built into bid prices and subsequently negotiated change orders.

District staff said the district has begun using a change‑order log prepared by the construction manager (referred to in the meeting as Palumbo) that records every request, original contractor request, negotiated cost and which contract allowance (if any) the change order draws from. The chart shown to the board separates change orders by contractor (general contractor, mechanical contractor SNL Plumbing & Heating Corp., etc.) and includes columns for original cost, negotiated cost and allowances.

During discussion a board member asked whether the district could track historic performance by contractor — specifically whether some contractors consistently produce higher change‑order totals than others. Staff said the construction manager meets with bidders to verify base bid information and that the log can be adapted to indicate which change orders are on a meeting agenda and how much of the original allowance remains. The meeting record included these working figures for the project covered by the chart: a change‑order (CO) total of about $199,000 compared with an allowances total of about $88,000 for that contract; staff said there remained roughly $8,891 in unused allowance overall for that project as presented.

A member of the public, Bobby Goodman, asked how the district decides whether to take money from other budget lines to finish an incomplete scope item or to pause work and bring a prioritization back to the board. District staff responded that for the current capital project the district was coming in under budget and that outstanding scope items (for example, work deferred from a prior science‑lab HVAC project) were included in the current project scope and planned to be completed; staff also said the construction manager and district officials prioritize unresolved items and will bring needed changes to the board if a budget ceiling is reached.

Board members requested that the construction manager’s change‑order log be presented in a more user‑friendly format showing which items are on the board agenda, the negotiated amounts and the remaining allowance per contractor, to make it easier for the board and public to see cumulative change‑order impact across phases.

The motions to approve the change orders for both Phase 2A and Phase 2B passed with the verbal roll calls recorded as “Aye” in the meeting transcript.