Capital-project update: windows, roofing and contractor accountability outlined to Caledonia-Mumford board
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Summary
Project team described completed window and roof work, ongoing library and auditorium renovations, and reported coordination problems with the general trades contractor that prompted an immediate meeting with the contractor and its bonding company.
The Caledonia-Mumford Board heard a detailed update on the district’s 2025 capital-improvement project on April 14, including completed window replacements, new roofing, library demolition and framing, auditorium rework, and near-term repair bids.
Jeff Robbins of Hunt Engineers led a photo tour of work already finished and in progress. He described finishing phase 1 window replacements on the street-facing side of the elementary building, replaced boilers, a new built-up roofing system on the elementary building and fitness center, and interior renovations in the nurse’s office and main reception. "We started back in December and we'll be working in that space up until the August," Robbins said when outlining timeline expectations for classroom and library work.
Robbins and other presenters told the board they expect phase-2 windows to be delivered the 20th of the month, and that auditorium ceiling and seating rework will continue through the summer. Board members raised concerns about seat spacing and acoustics in the auditorium; presenters said some rows are "only off by an inch or two" and described planned corrections and additional acoustic paneling work.
During the presentation, a project representative reported repeated performance, safety and coordination problems with the general trades contractor and said the team had escalated the issue to the district attorney and to the contractor’s bonding company. "We've had a very, very challenging general trades contractor here...we literally have a meeting tomorrow with the president, owner of the company, and his bonding company," the representative said, adding that the project team is enforcing contract terms and demanding better supervision.
The board later authorized the superintendent to sign a prime-contract award for masonry/wall repair work (Upstate Restoration of New York) in the amount of $245,700; that motion passed 6–0. Presenters emphasized the team’s intent to hold contractors accountable and to use contingency funds and change orders where necessary to finish the project without compromising specified materials and quality.
What the board asked next: members requested clearer acoustics analysis in the auditorium and closer oversight of schedule and punch-list items so students and staff can occupy finished spaces at the start of the next school year. Administration and the project team said they would pursue weekly on-site coordination, continue meetings with the GC and, if required, pursue remedies through the bonding company.
The presentation included status photos and a line-item contingency summary; budget-scope questions and contractor-performance concerns generated the meeting’s most sustained discussion.
