Munster board approves tennis-court coatings, Elliott half-court and a $251,613 change order

The School Town of Munster Board of Trustees on Tuesday approved multiple facilities contracts and a $251,613 change order to finish the district tennis facility.

Administration recommended retaining Garyup Construction Corporation to build a half-court at Elliott for $125,750 and Perma Seal to complete court coatings on 10 tennis courts for $133,321; both motions passed unanimously. Director of Operations Mr. Begley told trustees the work schedule and contractor signatory issues informed the board’s decision to hold the contracts and manage some of the scope directly.

Begley told the board the tennis facility has encountered site conditions not fully accounted for in the original budget. "As the tennis facility project has progressed, several conditions have been identified that were not fully accounted for in the original project budget," he said, citing unforeseen field conditions that required additional soil remediation, design coordination issues around a NIPSCO power line and relocating fence posts into separate curbs. "The proposed change order will allow the project to be completed as intended and maintain the functionality, safety, and quality standards established for this facility."

Trustees approved a change order totaling $251,613 to address those items. Chair raised concerns about scope documentation and asked the administration to have a “more sincere conversation with the architects” after noting what appeared to be omissions in the original design documents: "What I don't understand is how we hire an architecture group that forgets to or doesn't write in their description the curb with the tennis posts for the fencing," the Chair said.

Trustees discussed timeline sensitivity and weather impacts on concrete curing; Begley estimated that portions of the work would be poured toward the end of the month and that concrete needs roughly a month to cure, with a target completion by mid-September if weather cooperates. Begley also noted the board would receive the bid-tabulation forms so members could review contract pricing.

All three motions — the Elliott half-court contract ($125,750), the tennis-court coatings contract ($133,321) and the $251,613 change order for the larger tennis facility project — carried on unanimous voice votes. With approvals in hand, Begley said the district would issue a notice to proceed for the approved projects.

The board did not schedule additional hearings on these contracts; trustees asked administration to continue providing schedule updates and to follow up with the architect about scope and coordination questions.