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Select Board awards Boynton Library interior renovation; holds alternates pending Monty Tech participation
Summary
The Select Board voted to award the Boynton Library interior renovation contract to LaShell Construction at the lowest apparent bid and to hold alternate items while exploring whether Montachusett Technical High School students can provide donated labor for some work.
The Select Board approved awarding the Boynton Library interior renovation contract to LaShell Construction on July 23 while asking the project team to explore using Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School (Montech/Montech) students for some subwork.
Town staff presented the bid opening results and a memorandum describing a proposal to award the base contract to LaShell but to withhold Alternate 1 — which covers labor-intensive work — pending confirmation that Monty Tech can supply student labor and instruction. The memorandum said the alternate scope could be removed from the general contractor’s contract if Monty Tech is available and willing to assume those pieces.
Why it matters: The renovation is a high-visibility capital project for library services and is funded through the town’s approved appropriation. Using Mon-Tech student labor would reduce contractor costs and provide vocational training opportunities, but it requires schedule coordination and a sponsor to assume contractor/liaison responsibilities.
A motion to award the contract to LaShell, with the board holding off on Alternate 1 while the town verifies Mon-Tech’s availability, passed by majority vote. Select Board members also asked the project manager to fix a spelling error in the bid tabulation (John Henshaw’s name) before final contract paperwork.
Board members and staff discussed the potential for Monty Tech to perform cabinetry and other school-shop work if schedules align; the board also requested clear contingency language so the contractor understands which scope items may be removed or restored depending on the vocational program’s capacity.
Ending: The board voted to award the primary contract to LaShell Construction (apparent low bidder) and to defer awarding Alternate 1 pending confirmation of Mon-Tech’s schedule and the town’s ability to accept donated student labor; the chair will follow up with the architect and town staff to finalize the contract language.
