South Kingstown officials say high school project estimate is under budget; council approves change-order task force

South Kingstown officials told the Town Council on Sept. 22 that the high school construction estimate at the 60% design-document milestone is tracking under the town's construction budget, and the council approved a change-order task force to speed decisions during construction.

"The 60% is the progress of completion of the drawings, not the progress of the estimate," said Kate Turner of the school building committee during a presentation on the project's cost and schedule. The town manager and finance staff said the overall project budget remains $150 million; the construction budget within that total was listed at roughly $116.27 million and the 60% progress estimate came in at about $115,000,005.34, or roughly three-quarters of a million dollars below that construction allocation.

The town presented a line-item breakdown: $116,266,963 (construction budget), $3,000,001.36 (furniture, fixtures, equipment and technology), $11,000,000 earmarked for Curtis Corner scope, $12,000,008 for professional services and expenses, and a roughly $6.8 million owner's contingency (about 5'6%). The project team said the contractor's GMP (guaranteed maximum price) estimate includes a 3% contractor contingency and additional allowances for escalation and coordination during the remaining design work.

Why it matters: With a $150 million total project and a major construction contract in place (Gilbane is the construction manager under contract), even relatively modest shifts in estimates or unforeseen work can change the town's financing needs and require council approval for additional contract amendments.

Change-order task force approved

To streamline on-site decisions and avoid stoppages, the council approved a change-order task force and a tiered authority structure for authorizing contingency work. Under the new process:

- Emergency authorization: the construction manager may authorize time-and-material work up to $5,000 with written notice to the task force and building committee; all such work will be tracked and presented for later ratification. - Non-emergency, under $10,000: majority vote of the task force to proceed; school building committee (SBC) and town council will be notified at their next meetings. - $10,000 to $25,000: requires task force majority and school building committee approval prior to proceeding; town council will be updated subsequently. - $25,000 and above (unforeseen, time-sensitive): task force recommendation and SBC recommendation, then town council majority vote required before funding and contract authorization. - Elective (non-time-sensitive) changes: up to $15,000 require task force review and SBC authorization before proceeding; $15,000 and above follow the full path to town council approval.

The council also authorized the project team to request special council meetings if a critical, time-sensitive change over $25,000 arises and cannot wait for a regular council meeting. The contractor's change-authorizations (ATPs) will be compiled and executed in formal AIA contract amendment documents (AIA G701 series) before funds are released.

Composition and process details

Town staff described the task force as including a town council designee, a member of the school building committee, the deputy town manager, the superintendent or the superintendent's designee, and the finance director; the architect and construction manager will attend but are nonvoting. Staff recommended weekly meetings to review potential change orders and to forward items to the SBC and council as required by the monetary thresholds.

Council members asked about quorum logistics for special meetings and whether splitting a larger change into smaller pieces could be used to avoid council approval; staff cautioned that splitting to circumvent approval would be inappropriate and that task force members could always elevate any item to the SBC or council regardless of amount.

What did the council vote?

The council voted to approve the task-force recommendation and the tiered authorization limits. Council members also asked staff to bring a recommended council designee to the next meeting so the task force could convene soon after.

Speakers (selected)

- Kate Turner, School Building Committee (presenter) - Town Manager Jim (Town Manager) - Brian (Finance Director) - Council Member Bergner (Council)

Ending

Staff said the design team will continue refining documents toward a constructible bid set; officials asked for regular financial updates and said all change-authorizations will be presented at subsequent meetings for transparency and ratification. The council-approved task force aims to balance construction continuity with council oversight of larger expenditure changes.