Board hears $6.54 million GMP for proposed Novi community wellness and education hub

District staff presented a guaranteed maximum price package of $6,537,768 for the proposed Novi Community wellness and education hub and answered trustees’ questions about contingency, tariff exposure and contract structure at the May 14 board meeting.

"The award recommendation after taking bids and them doing post bid interviews is 6,537,768," Mr. Mah explained during the presentation. Staff also described a shift in contracting strategy for the bond program from a construction-manager-as-contractor (CMA) structure to a construction manager at risk (CMC) that holds subcontractor contracts directly to limit district liability.

Board members probed how the GMP treats unknown cost increases and tariff escalations. Jason, representing the construction manager (Chrisman), said trade contractors would be locked into tariffs and cost escalations that were known or foreseeable at the contract-signing date, and that large unforeseen global cost changes could require use of contingency allowances or separate discussion. He described the GMP as the district’s “worst‑case” maximum price and said experienced cost estimating by the construction manager typically recovers a portion of contingency at project completion.

The board also discussed program naming and next steps. District staff said they plan to form an ad hoc naming committee to consider a formal name for the facility and that they expect to bring the GMP back to the board for formal approval in a subsequent meeting once final documentation and subcontracting details are complete.

No final action on the GMP was taken that night; staff indicated they would provide additional contractual detail and responses to outstanding questions before asking the board to consider approval.