ECISD approves construction manager at risk for CTE high school; bond program reports steady progress

The ECTOR COUNTY ISD Board of Trustees approved a construction-manager-at-risk contract for the district—areer and Technical Education (CTE) high school and received a multi-project update on the district—ond 2023 program at its May 20 meeting.

Superintendent Dr. Boyer told trustees the construction manager at risk (CMAR) proposal for the CTE high school carries a guaranteed maximum price that is "slightly higher than we did anticipate" but said district staff expect value engineering and other adjustments to bring costs down and keep the project within the bond budget.

The board lso heard progress reports on the middle school site work and foundation; the Transition Learning Center (TLC) competitive-sealed-proposal bid timeline; Permian High School voluntary renovations; a proposed JROTC facility; and districtwide technology, surveillance and fine-arts instrument purchases that are part of Bond 2023.

Why it matters: The CTE campus is one of the largest Bond 2023 projects and the CMAR approval moves the district from design into committed construction procurement. Trustees were told the decision will allow the district to issue a purchase order and keep the project on schedule for planned construction milestones.

What trustees approved and discussed

- Construction-manager-at-risk for the CTE high school: Dr. Boyer presented a CMAR recommendation and asked trustees to approve moving forward with the contract and associated purchase order. The CMAR package includes a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) presented to the district on May 15. The board approved the item by voice vote. The superintendent said the GMP was higher than expected and staff plan to use value engineering to reduce the total cost.

- Funding adjustment to complete the CMAR purchase order: The district reported it will cover an approximately $3,000,000 shortfall in the CTE line item by shifting funds from the bond land acquisition balance. The superintendent said, "we do plan on taking 3,000,000 out of the dollars 8,000,000 that's available for land, taking $3,000,000 out of there, and putting it into this line item so that a purchase order can be prepared." Trustees approved proceeding.

- Middle school construction: Staff showed recent site and foundation photos and reported that site utilities, foundations and early block work for competition gyms were underway. The presentation noted that the district has spent about $12.5 million to date on the middle school project across two years.

- Transition Learning Center (TLC): Staff held a pre-bid meeting and site visit. As of the meeting, six contractors had indicated interest and the district expected to receive competitive sealed proposals later that week, with a recommendation to the board expected next month.

- Permian High School renovations and JROTC facility: Design development for Permian renovations is nearly complete and the district expects a GMP request next month. The JROTC facility proposal received a contractor estimate near $1.4 million; staff said small projects can be harder to value-engineer than large projects.

- Other bond work: The board was updated on technology installations (bells, alarms and surveillance cameras), fine-arts instrument purchases (about 1,100 instruments budgeted over the bond period) and site purchases where the district reported savings that help absorb overages elsewhere.

Trustee and community context

Board members and attendees emphasized stakeholder involvement. The superintendent credited district staff and outside partners—y name (Sam Aragon, Chris Bartlett, architects Barqeel, PBK and DLR, and contractor Hunter Construction) for keeping projects moving. The board also recognized Betsy Rhodes as a new member of the bond oversight committee.

Next steps

The district will proceed with the CTE CMAR purchase order and continue value-engineering work; staff expect updated cost estimates to be returned by the contractor during early construction. The TLC procurement timeline continues with evaluation of sealed proposals and a recommendation to the board next month. The district scheduled a tentative groundbreaking for the CTE building for June 17.

Ending note: Trustees repeatedly stressed oversight and stakeholder input as the district advances to the construction phase of multiple Bond 2023 projects.