Norwich committee approves multiple construction contract changes, hires owner’s representative for school projects

The Norwich School Building Committee on Wednesday approved several construction contract amendments, a short-term propane supply agreement for portable classrooms, perimeter tree removal at the Greenville/Moriarty site and the hiring of CSG as the owner’s representative for Teachers Middle School and Huntington Central Office projects.

Committee members said the actions clear administrative and schedule hurdles as construction proceeds at Stanton Elementary and the Greenville/Moriarty site, where blasting and rock-crushing operations are underway.

The committee approved a purchase and installation agreement with Douglas Gas for temporary propane service to portable classrooms at Stanton Elementary for a not-to-exceed amount of $5,913.60 and established a $2,060.40 contingency for additional fuel usage. A motion to approve the contract passed on a roll call vote of committee members present.

Members also voted to formally amend construction contracts to record previously authorized change orders (PCOs) on the Standing and Greenville building packages, and approved a credit back to the city for state education fees previously paid from owner soft costs—$13,061.79 for the Standing project and $15,889.00 for Greenville. The committee approved a set of PCOs for Greenville totaling approximately $573,209 as documented in the meeting packet. A separate vote approved perimeter tree clearing at Greenville at a cost of $28,340, which the contractor and staff said is intended to reduce a safety risk posed by exposed trees on steep embankments.

The committee unanimously approved hiring CSG as the owner’s representative for the Teachers Middle and Huntington Central Office assignments after an executive session and public motion and second.

Project staff updated the committee on construction progress at Stanton Elementary: steel erection has started in Area A, underslab electrical work and sanitary and storm installations continue, and primary utilities (water, gas, primary electrical duct bank and communications duct) have been run to the building vicinity. Site staff said the main entrance driveway is scheduled to be paved and reopened by the end of the week ahead of the school open house and return to campus operations.

Staff reported a long lead time on the project switchgear: the manufacturer Eaton lists a 52-week lead time for the unit delivered to the site on June 12, 2026, but project staff said they have an active factory contact and are pursuing a 3–10 week improvement via expedited fabrication and alternate factory assembly. Committee discussion noted the switchgear procurement remains an important schedule risk.

At the Greenville/Moriarty site, staff described ongoing drilling, blasting and rock-crushing operations. They reported 25 blasts completed to date and said they are asking the design team to consider raising the contractor blast particle velocity (PPV) allowance in specifications from 0.5 to 1.0 (the state guideline cited is 2.0) so crews can perform larger blasts in the middle of the site and reduce downstream whole-ram and crusher time. Staff also said third-party material testing indicates some crushed rock will pass for use as structural fill; however, not all crushed rock will be reused on site.

Geotechnical work also prompted a design change: geotechnical review reduced the planned overburden/structural fill thickness at one portion of the site from an earlier interpretation of 7–9 feet to about 4 feet. Staff said the revised depth shortens the time required for subgrade compression and affects sequencing for foundations and site logistics. The team reported that at the UNCA portion of the work, bearing strata (a layer of gravel) is typically about 12 to 18 inches above the water table, which informed the enabling-phase decisions.

Staff said they are not proceeding with a broad early-site work package because of design completeness and winter conditions; instead the site work will be issued as a single site-work package with targeted early procurement for long-lead items such as the switchgear. Staff reiterated the tentative schedule assumptions for OGA (owner’s) reviews and noted that faster OGA review could accelerate bidding and contractor mobilization in the spring.

Committee Chair Sheila Hayes moved and members seconded the formal consent and change-order items during the meeting; roll-call votes were recorded and motions carried. The committee went into executive session to discuss RFP scoring and selection of an owner’s representative, then returned to vote publicly to retain CSG. No votes were taken in executive session.

"There's two bathrooms in the portable, and they're supported by a hot water heater, not from the gas from the heating unit," said Matt Brown, identified in the meeting as school staff, during discussion about portable-classroom utilities.

Project staff summarized remaining near-term work as modular block-wall installation, continued drilling and blasting, rock crushing, and finalizing temporary bus loops, drop-off queues and parking logistics ahead of further permitting and bidding steps. The committee adjourned after routine business and the day’s votes.

Votes at a glance • Approve consent agenda (invoices and routine items): approved (roll call; majority yes). • Douglas Gas propane service and contingency (portable classrooms): approved (motion/second; roll call). • Amendment to Standing and Greenville contracts to record prior PCOs (various PCOs): approved (motion/second). • Greenville PCOs approximately $573,209 (details in packet): approved. • Refund/credit to city for state education fees: $13,061.79 (Standing) and $15,889.00 (Greenville): approved. • Perimeter tree clearing at Greenville: $28,340: approved. • Hire CSG as owner’s representative for Teachers Middle and Huntington Central Office: approved unanimously.

(Each of the actions above is recorded in the meeting packet and in the transcript excerpted below.)