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ICS outlines Duluth Public Schools summer facility projects and reports program under budget
Summary
ICS project manager Mark Needham told the HR Business Services Committee that lighting, roofing and boiler projects are on schedule for summer 2026, with several projects completing below budget and contingency spending minimal so far.
Mark Needham, project manager with ICS, told the Duluth Public Schools HR Business Services Committee on May 11 that several planned 2026 facility projects are on track and that the overall program is running under budget.
Needham said winter 2026 lighting replacements at Lowell Elementary and Lincoln Middle are wrapping up and that summer 2026 work will include a boiler replacement at Lakewood Elementary and a roofing replacement at Stowe Elementary. He described longer-range projects in 2027–28, including HVAC and controls work slated for Denfield High School and dehumidification projects at East High School and Ordean East Middle.
"We're about 86% complete" on Lincoln Park Middle lighting and "about 80%" complete at Lowell, Needham said, noting remaining interior fixtures are delayed by procurement and that exterior and parking-lot lighting work will be scheduled after school to minimize disruption. On Lakewood, he said contracts and permitting are largely complete and that site work will make room for a new propane tank as part of the boiler project.
On budget, Needham said buyouts and contractor participation produced savings: the Lincoln Park lighting buyout came in at about $955,000 versus an initial $1.8 million estimate, and the program has spent roughly $12,000 of contingency to date. "We're under budget and we're trending that way right now," he said, adding the district currently projects about $14,000 returning after current commitments.
Committee members pressed for details about contingency levels. Needham said projects typically start with a 5% contingency and that the current program has used far less than that percentage so far.
The district and ICS also described the start of a districtwide capacity-setting study to follow up on recent demographic work. Director Simone Zunich told the committee the study is a room-by-room inventory being performed with principals; data will be integrated with team partners to provide an updated, comprehensive view of site capacity and itinerant staff usage.
The committee did not take formal votes during the presentation; the project update will be part of ongoing agenda coverage and the ICS capacity study is scheduled to produce reports and recommendations later in the review process.
