Putnam County School Board approves GMP 3 for Melrose Elementary, clearing $30M phase

The Putnam County School Board voted at a special meeting to approve Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) 3 for the Melrose Elementary rebuild, authorizing the next major phase of construction that project representatives said is $30,000,009.87 of a project packet showing a roughly $35.08 million grand total.

The board heard a high-level overview from project representatives who described GMP 1 as mobilization and demolition, GMP 2 as site work and GMP 3 — the change order before the board — as the balance of work from concrete through finishes, with allowances for items not yet fully designed. Bill Pearson, a lead contractor on the project, said, “GMP number 1 was primarily for mobilization and demolition of the buildings on campus. GMP number 2 was for the site work… and this GMP 3… is the balance of the project.”

Why it matters: GMP 3 includes several large allowances that could affect the district’s schedule and future budgets if permitting or bids change. The board pressed staff and the contractor on three items singled out in the packet — campus backup power, replacement of an aging sewage lift station, and a large allowance for the on-campus wastewater treatment plant, which requires…