District hears TBK Construction Management pitch for Lomita Park bond work; contract to return Oct. 21

TBK Construction Management presented its approach to managing Measure J bond projects, including the proposed rebuild of Lomita Park, at a Millbrae City School District Board of Trustees meeting. Travis Kirk, president and CEO of TBK Construction Management Corporation, and Ryan Holman, project executive, described program planning, budget resilience, and on-site oversight; district staff said they expect to return a final contract for board consideration on Oct. 21.

The presentation outlined TBK’s plan to take the district’s facilities master plan and convert it into a bond implementation plan that sequences projects, protects budgets and prioritizes equity across sites. "We create that project list, the timelines, and then budget resilience," Kirk said, summarizing the firm’s preconstruction emphasis.

The firm described common sources of change orders — architect errors and omissions, unforeseen site conditions, demands from outside agencies, and district-requested changes — and explained how it vets, prices and, if needed, forces change-order work to time-and-materials accounting. "When we see a change order the very first thing we do is we look at the plans," Kirk said. He added that TBK enforces a strict rule that no change-order work be performed without prior written approval to avoid later claims.

Ryan Holman described TBK’s emphasis on planning for occupied campuses and minimizing disruption. He said the firm often identifies temporary moves and small design shifts early to avoid repeated relocations and additional portables, which add cost. TBK provided an example from a prior project in which shifting a building 10 feet eliminated the need to move occupants twice.

Board members asked detailed questions about change orders, subcontractor control, modular construction and timelines. Kirk said prechecked modular products that go through the Division of the State Architect (DSA) can reduce review time and construction escalation; he cited a past project in which a prechecked product produced “0 comments” from structural review and shortened the construction schedule. He also said an example Phase 1 at a prior innovation campus — 66,000 square feet — moved from DSA through construction to completion in roughly 14 months.

Superintendent Hickey and district staff said they conducted an interview and reference process and recommended TBK; staff are finalizing contract language and will present the contract to the board for approval at the Oct. 21 district business meeting.

The presentation included discussion of community engagement practices (programming, schematic design reviews and construction “Friday forecast” reports with photos), and TBK emphasized that senior company staff remain involved throughout projects rather than handing off work to lower-level employees.

Board members said they would follow up with staff and TBK on remaining questions before the contract return in October. No contract vote occurred at the meeting.