SiteLogic outlines ventilation, boiler and gym work for middle school; board tables votes on two buildings-and-grounds items

SiteLogic representatives gave the Jersey Shore Area School District board an update on planned HVAC and building work at Avis Elementary and the district middle school, reporting grant awards, contractor bids and a summer 2025 timetable while the board deferred two buildings-and-grounds decisions to a future meeting.

The presentation said the district received an Act 34 grant of $600,000 that requires a minimum local match of $210,000, making the minimum combined budget for the associated projects about $810,000. SiteLogic reported the district had issued a prior action on a dust-collector project costing $266,982 and that bids for unit ventilators at Avis elementary came back at about $564,000 for 13 replacements; work on those components is planned for summer 2025.

SiteLogic also presented a larger program for the middle school. The firm reported bids for 69 unit ventilators at about $3,246,749 and said the board-directed budget for the middle-school program remains at $7,500,000. That broader middle-school scope presented by SiteLogic included domestic hot-water and storage-tank work, recirculation pumps, chilled- and hot-water pumps, gym-floor replacement or refurbishment (pending a site evaluation), removal of drop ceilings, and improving ventilation in larger spaces such as the library and cafeteria with new air-handling or rooftop units instead of in-kind unit-ventilator replacements. SiteLogic said all new equipment would be tied into the district’s Automated Logic building-automation system and that unit ventilators would include MERV‑8 filters, stainless-steel drain pans and ECM motors. The firm also said the district’s chilled- and hot-water piping will be flushed and balanced and that full water treatment will be included; SiteLogic clarified there is no glycol in either school’s chilled- or hot-water systems.

Board members asked several questions about financing, procurement and contractor guarantees. Mike Arnold, identified in the presentation as SiteLogic’s senior vice president, described the procurement pathway SiteLogic recommended as an energy-savings contracting approach that includes measurement-and-verification obligations: "If through our measurement verification process, if we do not meet those savings, then we have to make up those savings back to you," Arnold said. He and other presenters told the board SiteLogic typically packages its pricing as an all-in figure that includes design, construction management and contingencies so the district sees one total cost rather than separate “hard” and “soft” cost line items.

Board members discussed whether to borrow in a single larger issue or in increments. SiteLogic and a board finance contact said it is common to phase borrowing to match project timing; SiteLogic added that, when market conditions allow, the firm will pursue early letters of intent with subcontractors to lock pricing and reduce the district’s exposure to sudden price increases.

President Dr. Ulmer reminded the board that two agenda items (listed as items B and C under Buildings and Grounds) would be tabled and would not be voted on tonight. Several citizens and board members commented during the public-comment period about the district’s long-term facility plan and the tradeoffs between renovating older buildings and consolidating facilities; SiteLogic representatives said they are prepared to provide further master-plan detail and cost estimates as the board requests.

The presentation included photos and commissioning data from recently completed boiler work at Avis Elementary and a summary of grant-writing support SiteLogic offers. SiteLogic also reported two rebates for prior work (one for about $180,000 and one for about $20,000) that were described as additive to the district’s energy-savings results.

The board did not take final votes on the main buildings-and-grounds items tonight; members directed staff and consultants to continue developing the scope, to provide a site evaluation for the gym floor before recommending replacement versus refurbishment, and to return with updated cost estimates and financing options at a later meeting.

Ending: The buildings-and-grounds presentation will return for formal action after the district receives additional cost detail and a gym-floor site evaluation; SiteLogic and district staff said they will provide updated borrowing estimates and a more complete master-plan presentation at a future public meeting.