Board reviews bids for 2022 bond package 8; staff to bring award for approval in two weeks

Tonight the Okemos Board of Education heard an update on the 2022 bond program and the recommended awards for bid package 8, a project centered on a music‑wing addition at the high school and several pressing‑needs renovations.

Lisonbee Duncan of the Veritas Group, the district’s owners‑representative team, introduced the package and said the bulk of the work is the expansion to the music area and interior renovations. Shane Lowsbury and Jake Hubert of Christman presented the bid results: “Our estimate came in at just over 4,600,000.0, the trades, the bids came in totaling just over 3,100,000.0,” Lowsbury told trustees, noting 51 bids were received across 14 categories and the team averaged about 3.6 bids per category.

The package includes a small addition for orchestra and band, interior renovations extending into an adjacent hallway, one‑for‑one bathroom replacements rather than full gut renovations, lighting upgrades in the auditorium/gym/cafeteria, replacement of numerous exterior doors and brick and cast‑stone repairs at the greenhouse. Presenters said construction scheduling is staged to avoid major disruptions to classrooms: some work will occur this summer, long‑lead items such as cooler/freezer equipment are scheduled for summer 2026, and the addition is not expected to be ready until the spring following that work.

Trustees asked about change orders, tariff exposure and contingency planning. The project team described multiple contingency buckets — construction contingency, owner contingency and allowances for design errors or unforeseen site conditions — and said the bids being recommended are fixed‑price contracts that give the district some protection against near‑term tariff‑driven price swings. “We have some protection in those. We don't have any cost plus contracts,” a Christman representative said.

Trustee Andy Phelps praised the results, saying he was “really happy to see $1,500,000 under budget” and asked for those numbers to be shared with the board. Trustees also asked clarifying questions about the kitchen and servery work, whether cafeteria expansion remains a district priority and the project timeline for when students would be impacted; presenters said the kitchen/servery scope was identified by food‑service leadership and that specific renovation sequencing will limit student disruption.

The project team said the board will be asked to approve the recommended awards at the next regular meeting in two weeks. The district’s bond web page and regular bond updates will continue to provide project‑level information for the public.

The board did not take a final award vote on package 8 tonight; staff will return with a formal recommendation for board action at the next meeting.