Niagara Falls City School District officials told the board at a review session that the district’s $30,000,000 capital program is roughly 80% complete and remains on schedule and under budget.

"We are over 80% complete on this $30,000,000 capital project," Mark Lohrey said at the meeting, thanking contractors and staff for progress on school security vestibules, HVAC work and other projects.

District staff highlighted several sites receiving work: secured double‑door vestibules with a pass‑through window and AI weapons detection at multiple schools; HVAC and chilled‑water system upgrades at Gaskill and LaSalle; a greenhouse at Bond that district staff say will be accessible to students across the district; and new fire doors and building branding at Niagara Falls High School.

Stu (staff member) described the secured vestibule installations and early commissioning work, saying the vestibules are "going very well" and that some units will continue through the summer. Earl Bass (district facilities staff) explained upgrades to alarm dialing and monitoring, noting the district is replacing hard copper dialers with cellular and IP dialers and routing alarms through a single call center (RapidSOS) once security installation is complete.

The board was told contractors named during the presentation include Frye, Danforth, Scraffari and MKS; staff also singled out Greater Niagara Mechanical on smaller HVAC work. Bill Zagrafis and Brian Trott were identified by staff as architects involved in the program.

A single owner‑directed change order discussed at the meeting affects Abbott Elementary’s front drive, described by staff as a badly degraded cut‑through used for drop‑off and pick‑up. Staff said a January 2023 water‑main break undermined the underlayment. The district described the affected area as roughly 17,000 square feet and said the recommended change order cost is $28,051.80; officials said there are contingency funds available and that the change order will be sent to the State Education Department for approval if the board approves it next week.

Mark Lohrey said the district expects the capital program to be complete, including punch‑list work and commissioning, by Aug. 31 so state reimbursement paperwork can be filed on schedule and the district can seek the 98% reimbursement it has factored into project planning.

The meeting also included a farewell to project executive Tony Maselli, who staff credited with leading more than $150 million in district construction work during a 12‑year association with the district.

Staff answered technical questions on systems, including glycol use in chillers and sequencing of electrical upgrades tied to National Grid work. Officials said HVAC start‑ups and commissioning were under way where power upgrades were already in place, and that remaining units will be started after the power work is completed.

Next steps: the Abbott repaving change order will appear on next week’s board packet for a formal vote and staff will continue commissioning and remediation work on items such as a Walk of Fame wall where paint defects were reported.