Wilson SD board approves bids for Lincoln Park Elementary; low bids keep project under PlanCon cap

The Wilson School District Board of Education on a 9-0 roll call approved a resolution to award construction contracts for Lincoln Park Elementary School after staff presented bid results and recommendations.

District staff told the board the low general-construction base bid came from ECI Construction at $19,417,000, with Lobar Incorporated about $1,000 higher. Staff recommended taking the unclassified-construction alternate for general contractor (GC), plumbing contractor (PC) and electrical contractor (EC), and installing the electrical portion of a wireless door-lockdown infrastructure now so the building will be ready if the district later installs districtwide door hardware.

The recommendation, if adopted, produces a grand total of $27,885,364 for the project as presented, a total building area of 78,387 square feet and a building cost of about $287 per square foot. Staff said the portion of the bid that counts as structure (from the bidders’ GO-8 forms) is $22,494,483, which is below the district’s stated maximum building construction cost of $28,105,264 under the PlanCon and Act 34 process.

Why this matters: Accepting the recommended alternates and the electrical infrastructure makes the project awardable while keeping the district inside the PlanCon maximum building construction cost, district staff said. They also reported the bids came in lower than the conservative budget presented in April, leaving overall project costs (including soft costs and allowances) at a total estimate of $33,527,944 and creating what staff described as a multi-million-dollar variance below the high end of earlier budgets.

Key details and timeline Staff said there were two closely paced GC bids with roughly a $1,000 (0.005%) difference between the two low GC base bids; HVAC attracted eight bidders and the two low HVAC bids were roughly $100,000 apart. The apparent low bidders and reported base bids cited by staff were: - General construction: ECI Construction — $19,417,000 (apparent low bidder) - HVAC: Tri County Mechanical — $3,244,000 (apparent low bidder) - Plumbing: SM Friday Mechanical Contracting — $1,691,470 (apparent low bidder; had a $5,000 unclassified alternate) - Electrical: Hernheisen Electric — $3,292,000 (apparent low bidder); McCarty and Son reported $3,298,472

Staff recommended accepting unclassified-construction alternates (which place responsibility for unsuitable soils on the contractor) for the GC, PC and EC trades, and recommended installing the electrical component of the wireless-lockdown alternate now so the building’s electrical infrastructure would be ready for future door-hardware installation. The general-contractor alternates and the electrical alternate affected which firm would be the apparent low bidder in some trades, staff said.

Staff described significant anticipated site work: based on GO-8 cost breakdowns from the low bidders, site-related portions of the bids exceeded $5,000,000 on a 7.5-acre site, which staff attributed to soft-soil conditions and related subgrade work. Staff said the building-structure portion of the bids keeps the project under the PlanCon maximum.

Budget comparison and allowances The district’s conservative April budget projection placed the high-end construction estimate above the submitted bids, staff said. The total project estimate of $33,527,944 includes updated soft costs (commissioning, testing and inspection, a web-based construction administration platform), allowances for playground equipment and a placeholder for construction management services the district may or may not use. The district also set aside roughly $1,100,000 within that total budget for furniture and other non-contractor items, which staff emphasized are outside the PlanCon contractor-based maximum building construction cost.

Schedule and next steps Staff said letters of intent to award contracts will be issued the day after the meeting, with contractors to begin assembling contract paperwork for district review. Staff said they expect to obtain final permits and aim for a July 28 ground-breaking with an estimated two-year construction schedule.

Board action and other approvals Board members moved and seconded a resolution to approve the Lincoln Park bid awards and related documents; roll call produced nine yes votes and no opposing votes, which approved the resolution. The meeting’s operations and finance sections also included several other motions that the board approved by roll call earlier in the same meeting, including change orders, a chiller service agreement, furniture purchases for the high school performing arts center and a letter of credit related to the Southern Middle School project (see “Votes at a glance” below).

Quotes from the meeting "That's staggering," said Sean, a staff member presenting the bid results, referring to how close the two low general-contractor bids were. He later urged the board to accept the electrical portion of the wireless-lockdown alternate so "when you are prepared as a district to undergo a district wide improvement to do that at this school as well," the building will be ready.

Votes at a glance (actions taken by the board during the meeting) - Superintendent items (3.1–3.4) — Approved (mover: Dr. Kennedy; second: Missus Denny). Roll call: unanimous yes (9-0). Items included retirements, resignations, status changes and professional hires as presented. - Student services (4.1–4.2) — Approved (mover: Mr. Schneider; second: Missus Denny). Roll call: unanimous yes (9-0). Included approval of a settlement agreement in lieu of FAPE for placement at the Janus School and an addendum to a coverage memorandum. - Operations (5.1–5.7) — Approved (mover: Mr. Case; second: Missus Denny). Roll call: unanimous yes (9-0). Items included multiple change orders (amounts cited in the board packet), a one-year chiller maintenance agreement with HT Lyons ($17,950), furniture purchase for the high school performing arts center from Wenger Corporation ($168,476.68), and approval of an improvements and financial security agreement with the Township of Spring pending solicitor review. - Lincoln Park Elementary School construction resolution (5.9) — Approved (mover: Dr. Kennedy; second: Mr. Case). Roll call: unanimous yes (9-0). Motion authorized award of bids for Lincoln Park per staff recommendation. - Finance (6.1–6.2) — Approved (mover: Mr. McCree; second: Missus Denny). Roll call: unanimous yes (9-0). Included a resolution ratifying tax assessment appeals and authorization of a $411,604.90 letter of credit to Tompkins Community Bank in favor of the Township of Spring for the Southern Middle School project.

What the meeting did not decide Board members and staff discussed future capital needs and long-term planning for the district; the superintendent described ongoing capital-planning activity and monthly reviews of future capital improvements but did not request additional board action on those future projects at this meeting.

Ending note With the bid awards approved, staff will move to finalize contract documents, secure permits and prepare for a late-July start. The board and staff said the results put the district in a stronger financial position relative to the earlier conservative budget assumptions and that the approved alternates preserve options for a future districtwide door-lockdown hardware installation.