Carteret county Schools

BOND PROJECTS INFORMATION GIVEN
Bond Projects Manger Keith Maready provided the Board with information and items for consideration.
Receive Bond Project Update
Mr. Maready said bond projects scheduling is complete and cash flow charts have been developed in correlation with the schedules.

Consider Accepting Cash Flow Chart
Mr. Maready recommended the Board approve a cash flow chart as submitted and request the County Commissioners to amend the project ordinance accordingly.
Dr. Rick Luettich made the motion to approve the Cash Flow Chart as the school system’s planning document. Al Hill provided the second.
Dr. Lenker noted the chart outlines the expenditures for the $50 million bond referendum and includes every project voters approved in the bond referendum.
Dr. Luettich said his emphasis would continue to be on “sealing the envelope” projects. Dr. Luettich asked what size auditorium was included in the document planning.
Mr. Maready said the document included a 400-seat auditorium at Croatan High School.
Dr. Lenker said the request was to accept the chart as a guideline. He said the County Manager requested an overall chart to be used for planning, and would like to present that document to the County Commissioners next week.
Dr. Luettich said he could not support a 400-seat auditorium at Croatan High School. He called the chart a schedule and stressed it was more of a cash flow chart then an endorsement of specific design details.
Mr. Carr said the document was not an endorsement of a 400-seat auditorium but an endorsement of a calendar of how the bond budget would be spent. He requested the Board of Education be provided a chart reorganized by site.
Mr. Hill said he hoped the bids would come in under budget and that money could be used for the auditorium.
Chair Neagle said this was a workable plan with the exception of the auditorium at Croatan High School.
After discussion, the motion passed 6-0.

Consider Award of Construction Contracts:

Broad Creek Middle School HVAC – Mr. Maready noted this work would convert the existing heat pumps to a closed loop system, which would eliminate ground water source cooling. He noted the bond budget for this work was $93,356 and he presented a contract from Diversified Construction Services for $54,825 with a $3,000 contingency for total of $57,825. He recommended the board award the bid and request the County Commissioners to amend the project ordinance.
Dr. Rick Luettich made the motion to approve this contract with Diversified Construction Services in the amount of $57,825. Al Hill provided the second and the motion passed unanimously.

West Carteret High School Resurface Track/Tennis Courts – The bond budget for the resurfacing of the track and the tennis courts is $140,981. Mr. Maready presented a contract from Advantage Sports Surfaces, Inc., in the amount of $84,850, with includes a $4,000 contingency. He recommended the board award the bid and request the County Commissioners to amend the project ordinance.
Mike Hodges made the motion to accept the contract with Advantage Sports Surfaces, Inc., in the amount of $84,850. Al Hill provided the second.
Dr. Luettich questioned why this work was going to be done at this time because it did not address sealing the envelope or ventilation issues.
Several Board members noted the safety concerns for students the track and tennis courts were causing.
Mr. Maready said many of the “seal the envelope” projects will take more study time. This work can be done this summer and be ready for students at the beginning of school.
Bill Blair said he was pleased the work could be done over the summer and under budget.
After discussion, the motion passed 6-0.

East Carteret High Parking Lot/Service Road Paving – The construction cost budget for parking lot and service road paving and striping is $200,823. Mr. Maready presented a bid for $137,953 from Onslow Grading & Paving. Because of unknown soil conditions, he recommended the Board establish an allowance for remediation of unsuitable soils in the amount of $13,050. The contingency for the project is $5,000, for a total contract of $156,748. Mr. Maready noted he hoped to use some of the savings to improve lighting in the parking lot. He recommended the board award the bid and request the County Commissioners to amend the project ordinance.
Dr. Luettich was concerned about spending money at East Carteret on something he would prioritize at a lower level then an adequate HVAC system or new windows. Dr. Luettich would like to see the paving work done and expects to see it done, but said he wanted the security of knowing the highest priority items, like a complete HVAC system, could be completed first.
Bill Blair noted the students at East Carteret High School had never had a paved parking lot and if the Board waits the prices will go up. He said the parking lot was a very important item and a safety concern.
Mr. Hodges agreed with Dr. Luettich and said while the parking lot was a high priority, the Board should error on the side of caution and get the school building envelope sealed and get the ventilation under control.
Mr. Carr agreed and asked Mr. Maready to expedite the bidding process on the HVAC and windows for East Carteret High School so the parking lot paving could be considered again.
Bill Blair made the motion to approve a contract with Onslow Grading & Paving in the amount of $156,748. Cathy Neagle provided the second. The motion failed 2-4 with Mr. Blair and Mrs. Neagle voting in favor of the motion.
Mr. Maready said the bid date for the HVAC package at East Carteret High School is October 2, 2008.
Dr. Luettich said more information was needed for the other parts of the planned renovations at East Carteret High School was needed before he could take action.
Mr. Hodges stated the Board intends to pave the parking lot at East Carteret High School. He wanted the public to know the vote on the matter failed because members wanted to make sure the top priorities at East Carteret High School were completed first.
Chair Neagle said the issue was tabled at this time.

Consider Changes to Architect/Engineer Contracts:

Roofing Engineer, Inc. (REI) – Mr. Maready noted that revisions to contracts from Roofing Engineer, Inc., have been received. He and Attorney Neil Whitford have reviewed the revisions. These revisions add to the scope of work being performed by REI. The additional work is roof renovation design at locations that were previously under the direction of the architectural team. Mr. Maready recommended contracts be approved as submitted for East Carteret High School, White Oak Elementary School and Newport Elementary School.

East Carteret High School –

Dr. Luettich asked what company would do the soffit work at East Carteret High School.

Mr. Maready said soffit work was not addressed in the bond referendum. He hopes the bids would come in such a way to have funding to address some facia and soffit repairs at East Carteret High School. He noted the most cost efficient time to do facia and soffit work would be when the roof work was done.

Dr. Luettich asked Mr. Maready to find out how much it would cost to include the soffit design in the contract and provide that to the Board.
Mike Hodges made the motion to table the REI contract for East Carteret High School roofing until the next Board meeting.
David Carr provided the second and all members voted aye.

White Oak Elementary School –

Dr. Luettich made the motion to accept the REI contract for White Oak Elementary School. Al Hill provided the second and the motion passed 6-0.

Newport Elementary School –

Dr. Luettich expressed concern that the proposed contract did not include soffit or fascia replacement.

Mr. Maready said the soffits and fascia did not need to be replaced at the school at this time for function reasons.

Dr. Luettich made the motion to approve the contract with REI for Newport Elementary School.

All Hill provided the second and the motion passed 6-0.

Stanford White Associates – Revisions to contracts with Stanford White Associates have been received and reviewed. The revision adds to the scope of work being performed by the company. The additional work is HVAC renovation design at locations that were previously under the direction of the architectural team.
Dr. Luettich reviewed and asked for further information on several project items.
Mr. Hodges made the motion to table the contracts with Stanford White Associates.
Al Hill provided the second and all members voted aye.

Shuller Ferris Lindstrom & Associates (SFL+a) – Revisions to contracts with SFL+a have been reviewed. The revision removes renovation design from the company’s scope of work and reduces the company’s fee agreement.
Attorney Neil Whitford presented the contracts.
He noted for cost-cutting measures complimenting the Board’s efforts to complete the school bond projects on budget, Dr. Lenker has been negotiating with SFL+a Architects for a reduction in the scope of their work and a corresponding reduction of their architectural fees. The bond projects include both extensive renovation and new construction. The plan to reduce costs is for the school system to directly handle as much of the renovation work as possible, and to use consulting engineers when design professionals are required, but to remove the renovations from the architects’ work responsibility. The architects will remain responsible for design and construction administration for the new construction. Because the architects will only be involved with new construction, they have agreed to reduce their fees to essentially 6.5 percent of construction costs, down from 7.5 percent. The architects have also agreed to eliminate travel reimbursement for school system projects and to assign a new project architect to handle the day-to-day work on the projects.
Attorney Whitford noted the reduction in estimated architect’s fees is $1,206,512. These figures are estimates, which is based on 6.5 percent of the estimated construction costs. If the costs exceed the estimates, the architect’s fees will rise accordingly. Attorney Whitford also noted that the reduction in architect’s fees was not a net savings to the school system because some of the work that originally fell under the architects’ purview has been shifted to engineering firms. The preliminary additional engineering fees are about $720,000. He noted that nonetheless, the school system would realize significant savings under this arrangement.
Dr. Rick Luettich made motion to approve the revised contacts with SFL+a as presented.
Bill Blair provided the second. The vote passed 5-0 with 1 abstention. Mr. Hodges said he was not opposed to the contract but had not received the contract in time to completely review and support it. Attorney Whitford said the late date of delivery was because the negotiations were just completed.