Willis ISD notifies board of emergency contract after Bravel Middle School flooding

Willis ISD notified the Board of Trustees on Jan. 27 that Bravel Middle School suffered flooding on Jan. 9 and the superintendent used the district's emergency-procurement authority under board policy CH Local to enter an emergency remediation contract.

District staff said the flooding filled the school library after stormwater entered electrical conduits embedded in the building slab. Staff reported they opened an emergency contract using existing job-order-contract (JOC) vendors and solicited cost-plus proposals from three vendors. The district received bids described in the meeting as: Nash Industries at 10 percent, Stewart Builders at 3.5 percent, and BNC Construction at 15 percent. Staff told trustees the district awarded the work to Stewart Builders on a cost-plus 3.5 percent basis.

The presenter said crews dug up the conduits and found they terminate near a drainage ditch between Bridal and Meadow, and that water in that ditch may have routed into the conduits and into the building slab. Staff described continued investigation of the drainage path but did not announce any completed repair to the outdoor drainage system.

The presenter told trustees that policy CH Local permits emergency contracts and that competitive requirements “still exist for emergency procurement,” meaning the district sought multiple bids despite the emergency. The board was given the required notification at the next available meeting, and no board vote was recorded on the emergency award during the Jan. 27 meeting.

Trustees asked questions about the drainage and confirmed the Stewart Builders price is cost-plus 3.5 percent. The board did not take additional formal action on the item during the open meeting; staff said they would continue investigation and remediation work.