Board approves high school change orders, hears updates on mural, leaks and middle-school bid timing

The Bath County Board of Education on Oct. 27 approved several change orders and credit adjustments for work at Bath County High School and heard progress updates and open issues on both the high school and middle school renovation projects.

Construction staff and the district's project team updated the board on closeout work at the high school, including punch-list items, a rooftop unit that required a controller replacement and a kitchen-area leak that appeared only during a heavy October storm. The district said it will conduct a hose test to locate any remaining leak and will complete warranty repairs as needed.

The board also discussed a dispute over a recently installed mural. Project staff said a full-color physical sample was not provided to Board member Miss Brandenburg before installation; board members objected that the mural's maroon and red palette did not match the district's colors. One board member said the board would not place more district funds into the mural, noting the cost cited for the work (about $13,000). Project staff said they are working with the supplier to correct the installation at no additional cost to the district if possible.

Change orders and contingency: Project staff summarized several change items for the high school. PR38 covered additional flooring replacement next to the concession stand (the FRC/Sterling Health area); the contractor acknowledged a remaining balance due of about $6,947.50 for that work. PR40 was a small credit (about $267.92) for electrical work not performed for front-entry access control. PR41 addressed urinal screens and partitions; the contractor quoted $1,163.36 for materials (option A) or about $5,175 for materials and contractor labor (option B). The board ultimately approved PR41 selecting option A (materials only).

The project team reported five direct purchase-order items with remaining balances resulting in a net credit back to the project of approximately $16,433.91. After accounting for the credits and the change orders discussed, the project manager said the high school project would have roughly $193,191 remaining in contingency, which the team plans to earmark toward a negative contingency on the layback/asphalt work once the high-school closeout BG forms are processed.

Middle school timing and budget risk: The board heard that the Bath County Middle School renovation construction documents were approved for submission. Project staff said bidding depends on the city's completion of a water-flow test (to confirm fire-suppression capacity and hydrant access) and the plan reviewer's timeline; if both dominoes fall quickly, bids could be advertised in late November, but a December or January bid is possible. The project cost estimates in the packet included a base-bid construction estimate of about $11.4 million and a full project estimate including alternates and soft costs of roughly $13.05 million. Staff recommended considering making the roof and other envelope items alternates to reduce base-bid price exposure.

Security and access issue: Staff described chronic problems with ADA actuator buttons tied to electrified door hardware at the Chennault Building entrance that cause repeated lock failures; one option presented was to disable the ADA actuator functionality and rely on reception staff to grant entry, though staff asked the board to consult principals about the preferred operational approach.

Board actions: The board approved change orders PR38 and PR40 and selected PR41 option A (materials cost only); it approved the crediting of unspent DPO funds totaling $16,433.91, and it approved the construction documents for the Bath County Middle School BG25-084 and authorized the superintendent to approve bid documents once required tests and reviews are completed.

Next steps: Project staff will complete the high-school closeout steps, pursue remedies with the mural supplier, monitor the kitchen leak and finish remaining commissioning work, and move funds between projects via revised BG forms to close out the layback/asphalt change order.