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Contractor reports steady interior progress, notes heavy-duty storm windows at new Bethel Park K–5
Summary
The district’s construction manager gave the board a pictorial progress update on the new K–5 elementary project, reporting drywall and finishes in the cafeteria and classrooms, gym work underway with tornado-rated windows installed, and dozens of change‑order fixes for mechanical systems; the board approved related change orders.
Massaro, the construction manager for the Bethel Park School District K–5 elementary project, told the board that interior finishes are moving forward despite exterior delays from winter weather. ‘‘We finally hung drywall in the cafeteria,’’ the contractor said, noting that rough‑ins are complete and crews are now installing finishes, casework and flooring throughout classroom wings.
The presenter pointed to recent progress in the gym — painting is under way, furring strips have been positioned for sound panels, and the district received heavy, tornado‑rated windows for the gym, which the contractor described as ‘‘incredibly heavy and incredibly thick.’’ He said those units required significant effort to install. The contractor also highlighted safety: the project has gone 530 days without a recordable incident.
The update included several technical change orders brought forward for board awareness: a credit for revised visual display boards (GC46), an extension of temporary enclosures (GC47) that had been adjusted for bookkeeping corrections, and mechanical items such as added duct detectors and a revised condensate drain routing that required extra copper piping. Massaro said engineers caught missing internal support rings on fabric duct socks during shop‑drawing review and added them to avoid noise and operational problems when HVAC systems inflate the fabric ducts.
Board members asked finance staff for clarification on how the change‑order credits and overages were reflected in the cost summary. Staff said the summary lists approximately $43,000 in net change‑order amounts in one line and that some contractor submittals initially overstated costs before being credited; overall, site‑related overages (including soil issues) totaled in the millions but had been partially offset by credits.
At a facilities committee motion later in the meeting, trustees approved the listed change orders for the K–5 elementary school project (vote recorded by the board as 7–0). Administration said movers will be scheduled for June–July and orientation and homeroom assignments will take place in August as the district completes punchlist and occupancy activities.
The board will receive additional visual updates on the district’s YouTube channel and administration said it will return with more precise schedule dates as weather permits and exterior work resumes.
