Board approves North Penn High School construction contracts, issues notices to proceed

The North Penn School District board on Feb. 20 voted to award multiple contracts for the first phase of the North Penn High School renovation, authorized notices to proceed, and approved several small amendments related to site surveys and planning.

The board voted to award the listed construction contracts and to issue notices to proceed for the North Penn High School construction/renovation project. Doctor Bauer said funding for the project “will come from the North Penn High School construction fund.” The board then voted to issue notices to proceed to the awarded contractors.

Board discussion addressed procurement and bidder responsibility. Mr. Slaughter, the district facilities representative involved in the project, said the recommended contractors “we have experience with all those contractors and they're excellent contractors.” On the legal standard for choosing bidders, Mr. Slaughter told the board, “we're required by law to take the lowest responsible bidder. And to do otherwise is pretty much a pathway to a a a lawsuit, which would delay the project.”

When a citizen raised concerns at public comment earlier about a contractor that he said was involved in litigation, a board member asked whether ongoing litigation could make a bidder “not considered a responsible bidder.” Mr. Slaughter and a district representative answered that it is “debatable” and that past or current litigation is not automatically a disqualifier unless qualifications included that factor. Mr. Summers, addressing legal considerations, said litigation history “could be a factor that's taken into consideration” and noted the district uses internal staff and hired consultants to evaluate bidder responsibility.

The board also approved three contract amendments tied to planning and township review: an $8,200 amendment to Cowen Associates Inc. for additional tree-survey services; a $7,182.04 amendment to Cowen Associates for additional feature surveys; and a $4,500 contract with Horner and Canter Associates to provide a pedestrian report and survey for a potential pedestrian crossing near Bridal Path across from Crawford Stadium on Sumneytown Pike. All three motions passed with no recorded opposition during the meeting.

The board received thanks for contracting work and for the district’s recently hired facilities director, and moved on to other agenda items.

Ending: The project will proceed to the next phases with awarded contractors and the small contract amendments in place. The board did not provide a specific timeline in the meeting for construction milestones beyond the approval to proceed.