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Board debates oversight and consultant selection for Boyertown Elementary project
Summary
Board members asked administration detailed questions about oversight, qualifications and the district’s planned use of an outside firm (Dewey/CHA) for an anticipated $15 million Boyertown Elementary project.
Several board members raised concerns March 25 about oversight, scope and contractor selection for an anticipated Boyertown Elementary School project described in earlier investigations.
A board member said she was "opposed" to moving forward with the outside firm Dewey (noting it was later described as Dewey/CHA) because she feared the district would lose oversight on a project she described as a "$15,000,000 project" and wanted a firm that would look strictly after Boyertown’s interests. Other board members and administration responded that the role of an outside construction management or design firm is to provide expertise to the district and that the district’s director of facilities and board would continue to exercise oversight and make final decisions on contract awards, change orders and other key milestones.
Administration said the district had delayed presenting a finalized agreement to allow legal review on both sides and planned to bring the agreement to the April Committee of the Whole meeting, with representatives from Dewey/CHA present to answer questions. Administration described the outside firm’s role as investigating, designing and providing construction management services and returning recommendations and bids for the board’s review; the board’s ultimate decisions would remain intact, administration said.
Board members asked follow‑up questions about the consultant’s qualifications, PMA certificates, capacity to perform multiple projects (roof, HVAC, turf) and whether the firm would act as clerk of the works or hire a subcontractor for that role. Administration recommended the Committee of the Whole meeting as the forum for those detailed questions and said the finalized agreement would be available for board review prior to a vote.
The board did not take a final vote on contracting for the project at the March 25 meeting; administration said it will present a finalized agreement and have the consultant available for detailed questions in April.
