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Operations committee: capital project bids delayed; district sees roughly $2 million shortfall in early estimates
Summary
The district's operations committee reported a shortfall in the capital project budget, delays in SED approvals and plans to issue alternate bid items; the elementary addition, playground and sand-filtration system are top priorities while smaller items may be deferred.
Operations committee members told the Beekmantown Central School District board that initial numbers for the district's capital project show a funding gap of about $2 million and that State Education Department (SED) approvals and third-party reviews have delayed the bidding timeline.
Committee members said they are proceeding to put the primary building addition out to bid and will use alternates for lower-priority items if estimates remain short.
The nut graf: With bids not yet returned and some original estimates two years old, the district plans to award the main bids first and treat items such as additional smaller projects as alternates to be added if additional funding becomes available.
What the committee reported
- Budget shortfall: The committee said the initial schoolhouse estimates indicate the district is about $2,000,000 short of the amount needed to complete the entire project scope as presented earlier. Staff cautioned the schoolhouse numbers are preliminary and that bids have not yet been returned.
- Timeline and approvals: The addition was advertised for bid, but SED has not provided final approval; the district engaged a third-party reviewer to help speed the process and is calling SED for status updates.
- Priority and alternates: Committee members said the elementary addition and playground are the highest priorities, followed by a sand filtration system. Other work (cafeteria hood replacements, grease trap on the main campus, taking down one building) would become alternates prioritized by need.
- Contingency: Members noted an earlier contingency within the voter-approved $11.1 million project; preliminary estimates cited by staff are higher than the older figures, so the contingency would not cover the full gap.
Board questions and next steps
Board members asked whether the sand-filtration item could be moved back into the base bid depending on final numbers; staff said they are waiting on additional cost figures and bids.
Ending: The committee said it hopes to put shovels in the ground in spring if SED approval and bid results permit, but emphasized the schedule could change as bids and approvals develop.
