High school project nearing closeout; middle school design cleared for bidding pending water-flow test

District construction staff updated the Bath County Board of Education on Oct. 27 about two major projects: closeout activity and several change orders on the Bath County High School project and design/bidding readiness for the Bath County Middle School renovation.

At the high school, staff reported the one-year warranty walk-through and commissioning are largely complete; remaining punch-list items include some rooftop HVAC concerns that had a controller installed and an isolated kitchen-area leak after heavy rain that staff will localize with a hose test. Staff said they will monitor the site and seek warranty work where appropriate.

Staff described a dispute about a mural/graphics installation: board members said the delivered mural differs in color and quality from presentation images and that no explicit written approval from a board member was located. District staff said they have presentation emails and mock-ups from the supplier (Schiller) but no signed physical sample approval; staff said they will work with the vendor to pursue a fix that will not cost the district if possible.

Project accounting and change orders were reviewed: PR38 (additional flooring) resulted in a pay request of about $6,947.50; PR40 represented a small credit (about $267.92) for omitted electrical work; PR41 (urinal partition options) presented a materials-only price of approximately $1,163.36 versus a previously discussed higher figure; and several direct-purchase order (DPO) credits totalled $16,433.91 returning to project funds. Staff said the high school has roughly $191,000 remaining contingency; the LAVEC/layback project currently shows a negative contingency (about $165,000), and staff proposed moving surplus high school contingency to cover LAVEC shortfalls at closeout.

The construction presenter discussed security/access issues at the Chennault (transcript also shows the spelling "Chanel") building entrance: ADA actuator push buttons tied to electric locks have been jamming, and staff recommended disabling the actuator-to-lock function so reception staff can control access and prevent recurring lock failures; the board asked staff to monitor and recommend a final approach.

For the middle school, staff submitted construction documents and a KDE statement of probable cost. Staff said bidding depends on two prerequisites: the city performing a water-flow test for the new fire-suppression piping and the plan reviewer completing review (staff estimated plan-review could take four to six weeks). Packet figures discussed included a base bid estimate around $11.4 million and total project estimates near $13 million to $13.5 million (figures in the packet were discussed in the meeting and contain some variations in transcription). Staff recommended proceeding to bid to discover actual contractor prices but warned the roof and major mechanical systems are the principal cost drivers; alternatively the board could value-engineer items or make major systems alternates on bid day.

Board actions: the board approved several construction-related consent items and separate motions: PR38 and PR40 change orders were approved, the board selected PR41 Option 41a (materials-only) rather than the higher materials+labor option, DPO credits totaling $16,433.91 were approved, and the board approved construction documents for the Bath County Middle School (BG-25-084). In other business the board authorized Superintendent Dr. Milton to approve bid/construction documents and proceed after required testing and approvals.

Next steps: staff will monitor warranty items, pursue corrections on the mural with the supplier, complete hose-testing to locate the kitchen leak origin, finalize closeout paperwork to release contingency funds, perform or coordinate the city water-flow test for the middle school, and advertise bids once the plan reviewer signoff is obtained.