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Middle school project ahead of schedule; district weighing taking AV work in-house
Summary
Facility committee heard that the new middle school is progressing ahead of schedule and discussed removing audiovisual (AV) work from the general contractorto let the district bid and manage it, which could affect short-term costs and timing for summer work.
Waunakee Community School District facility staff told the Facility Committee on March 6 that the district's middle school construction is proceeding ahead of schedule and that administrators have begun discussing moving summer school 2026 into the new building.
The discussion matters because an earlier occupancy date would allow district staff to do work inside the existing middle school while students are out, and because changes to the AV scope could shift cost and management responsibilities. Committee members were also updated on contingency-tracker items and recent value-engineering credits identified by the construction team.
District staff said the schedule improvement has opened the possibility of occupying the new building sooner than originally planned and that, should the board decline to authorize work in the existing middle school before a referendum, the earlier occupancy option would not be pursued. The staff presentation noted the district is considering moving some AV work out of the general contractor's guaranteed maximum price (GMP) and instead having the district procurement team solicit multiple bids. That change would be a deduct to the contractor's contract but would move the AV cost onto the district's purchase list and allow the IT director to manage vendor selection.
Committee members asked for timing and cost clarity. Staff said the district knows the amount currently included in the GMP that could be pulled out but does not yet know how competitive bids would compare to the contractor's quote. Staff said they expect to resolve the procurement approach within one to two months and, if the district manages the work, to follow the model used on recent projects where the IT director sought multiple quotes.
Staff also described routine value-engineering activity between the contractor and the district's design team, which has produced credits that may reduce project cost if the district approves them. Those credits are vetted by the design team and then presented to the district's decisionmaker for approval.
The committee was told that if the district decides to pursue occupancy and summer work in 2026 the operations team would need to move furnishings and coordinate the schedule; conversely, if the board opts not to pursue pre-referendum work at the existing middle school, the scheduling question becomes moot. Staff said they will provide an update at the next on-site meeting and will report final decisions on the AV procurement once bids and partner approvals are in hand.
District staff additionally noted that some contingency tracker line items show credits and that the construction team continues to evaluate potential savings.
