Radnor board approves contracts for Ithan Elementary after vetting bidders; vote 9-0

Radnor Township School District’s board voted unanimously Tuesday to accept and award construction bids for the new Ithan Elementary School and directed administration and counsel to process contracts for each prime contractor to full execution.

The vote followed a presentation by the district’s construction management team and the project architect explaining the due diligence performed on the apparent low bidders. Damien Spar of Site Logic told the board the team used AIA statements of qualifications, supplemental school-construction-specific qualification forms, required performance and payment bonds, Occupational Safety and Health Administration establishment searches covering the prior five years, reviews of experience modification ratios (EMR) and checks of the Commonwealth’s debarment and settlement list. "We found no surprises in our research relative to OSHA," Spar said.

Why it matters: The decision advances a project with current bids totaling roughly $76.37 million into contract execution. Board members spent substantial time probing contractor solvency, safety records, litigation history and contingency planning because Pennsylvania law requires selecting the lowest responsible bidder and because the project’s price is materially higher than early estimates.

Spar told the board the team reviewed EMR — an insurance industry metric where 1.0 is considered typical — and that most bidders were below 1.0; one small-scope bidder had an EMR of 1.125, which the team judged acceptable based on prior experience with that contractor. He said the project team carried about $1.6 million in contingency, and after correcting a duplicated soft-cost line expected the final budget to be under $76 million.

Board members pressed for specifics on how searches and references were run and how far back litigation reviews reached. Spar said the team looked back five years for pending or settled lawsuits and relied on industry knowledge and informal references in addition to those provided by prime contractors. "We look back five years at any pending lawsuits or any settled lawsuits in the last five years," a member of the project team said during Q&A.

Cost concerns and alternates: Several board members voiced discomfort with the project’s price compared with prior estimates; one member noted early estimates near $57 million and the current low-bid total of $76,367,511. That member urged taking several alternates under the general contract to save about $700,000. Other members and the professional team cautioned that some alternates — for example, substituting a lower-cost floor product for terrazzo — could reduce upfront cost but raise lifecycle replacement costs, potentially offsetting short-term savings.

Architect Steve Behrens of Breslin Architecture said the contractors presented "are not among those who have a reputation for not making timely payment" to subcontractors and that the firms have long-standing experience in educational projects in the region.

The motion that the board accept and award the bids, including recommended alternates, and authorize staff and counsel to proceed with contract processing was moved and seconded. "All in favor? All opposed? This passes 9 0," the chair said after the roll call.

What happens next: With the motion approved 9-0, administration and counsel will process the prime contracts for full execution and continue to reconcile soft costs and financing. The board announced upcoming committee meetings and its next regular business meeting on Feb. 24.

Key quote: "We found no surprises in our research relative to OSHA," Damien Spar said, summarizing the project team’s vetting. "This passes 9 0," the chair said after the vote.

Sources: Board meeting transcript; remarks by Damien Spar (Site Logic) and Steve Behrens (Breslin Architecture).