Board reviews auditorium, campus accessibility projects tied to referendum; approves related bid awards

The Lawrence Township Board of Education heard a detailed presentation from lead architect Steve Schreiter and Assistant Superintendent for Student Services Vanessa Bakarciak on planned accessibility and capital projects funded through the district—s referendum and related site work.

Schreiter described interior alterations planned for the Lawrence Middle School auditorium, including removal of existing seating and finishes, theatrical and MEP updates, creation of an accessible concourse to provide a level path of travel to the stage and designated wheelchair seating with companion seats. He said about 5% of overall seating will include liftable armrests to create flexible aisle seats and that the total seating count will decrease "due to the new altered areas in the back of house"; the transcript did not specify the exact number of seats lost.

Other planned work includes stair replacement and a new ADA ramp at Slackwood Elementary School (doors 5, 6 and 7), four new single-use ADA-compliant toilet rooms and a laundry closet at Lawrence Intermediate School to support life-skills programming, and site improvements at Lawrence High School and Lawrence Middle School including expanded paved parking, new drop-off and pick-up lanes, depressed curbs with detectable warnings and accessible paths to stadium seating and playing fields. The architect noted the district will replace an existing gravel lot with a paved lot and will provide barrier-free routes to the stadium and new playing fields.

Board staff noted potential asbestos given the age of some buildings and said the district is working with an environmental consultant and using existing hazardous-materials reporting as part of design and preconstruction due diligence.

The board considered a set of finance/business items that included awarding the base bid for auditorium work (listed on the agenda as SBM 12) and selecting a construction management firm (SBM 13). The finance committee reported the recommended construction manager earned a perfect score in the procurement review and that the award came in under budget. The full board approved SBM 1 through 21 during the meeting (the motion was moved by Tom and seconded by Joanne). In the roll call recorded on the transcript, Clark, Evans, Groger, Kelly, Martinez, Pascoli, Van Heise and Bowes voted yes on the finance slate; the motion carried.

Board members asked whether seating capacity would be reduced; the architect confirmed seating would decrease but did not provide a specific seat count. The board secretary emphasized that, while the auditorium would seat fewer people after renovation, the district planned gymnasium capacity to accommodate a full-school assembly.

The board also discussed logistics for upcoming community meetings about reconfiguration and the referendum timeline; the district said the next community conversation is scheduled for Oct. 15 at Lawrence Middle School.

Votes at a glance - SBM 1SBM 21 (finance/business slate, including auditorium base bid award and construction manager selection): approved. Roll-call yes votes recorded in transcript include Clark, Evans, Groger, Kelly, Martinez, Pascoli, Van Heise and Bowes. - Award of asbestos abatement contract (under bid threshold): described as already awarded in procurement work; not subject to separate board action because the amount was below bid threshold (as explained by staff).

The board asked staff to continue asbestos diligence as projects move into construction and to return with any material changes to scope or cost for additional board approval.