ELY – With numerous questions and feedback in hand, and a recent plea for major adjustments, ISD 696 school board members gathered at a study session Monday night to ponder their next moves for a $20 million building project that is more than $4 million over budget.
Following a special study session with district principals and a building facilities committee meeting last week, board members met with the project architect and construction managers to work through the mounting challenges of providing a modern educational facility for the Ely community.
More than $12 million in construction bids, mainly for the campus’s new building, were approved earlier this spring. A second bid package, primarily for the renovation and modernization of the district’s existing Memorial and Washington buildings, was budgeted at about $4 million but came in at $8 million. The bids of the second construction package were rejected last month and officials hope to rebid that project scope at a smaller scale later this year.
During the bid process, school officials were assured that despite the separation of the construction process into two parts, the entire project would be treated as one entity. However, any project cuts will have to be made from the planned renovations of the existing buildings. When it comes to trimming as much as $4 million, the first bid contracts are already signed, approved, and apparently off limits to any adjustments.
Losing any classroom or learning space modernization did not sit well with the two district principals, Megan Anderson and Anne Oelke. They requested a special study session with the school board last week and pleaded with them to allow the proposed renovations for the existing learning spaces to remain.
Adding additional cost to district taxpayers, lawyers are getting involved in the conversation. ISD 696’s lawyer was asked to provide a legal opinion on whether or not the district can make adjustments to any of the 36 individual construction contracts signed in the first package as a way to get the entire project back within budget.
ISD 696 Superintendent Erik Erie indicated Monday night that the legal opinion from the district’s lawyer, Kelly Klun, is coming later this week.
“We have an opinion, not in writing yet, but she acknowledged that we have signed contracts,” he said. “Can you get out of a signed contract? Sometimes you can, but it will be at a cost.”
The project construction manager, Kraus-Anderson, sent two representatives to the study session Monday night. Mike Dosan stated matter-of-factly, “We typically don’t go backward with those (signed) contracts.”
He renewed his push for the $4 million in project scope reductions to come from the second bid package.
Air quality upgrades
Cost overruns are also cropping up in another aspect of the renovation project, the upgrading of the campus HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) system. The modifications can likely be mostly paid for through the district’s long-term facility maintenance (LTFM) account where the funding, some provided by the state, is spread out over many years.
Board and facilities committee member Tony Colarich said the original ventilation systems were installed in 1903.
“We need to replace everything, especially now with COVID (concerns),” he said.
Nine air handling units need to be replaced and new duct work and controls installed. Even with the existing LTFM funding of just over $1 million, there will be shortfall, according to Colarich.
“We are going to be in need of additional funding for that, unless we take it out of the project, but it would be nice to have additional funding,” he said.
He introduced the possibility of a federal COVID relief funding plan that could be tapped by ISD 696.
“The American Rescue Plan granted Minnesota $1.38 billion, and of that St. Louis County receives $54 million,” Colarich said. He described a specific line item on the funding plan that addresses “school ventilation upgrades.”
School district officials were set to meet this week with St. Louis County Commissioner Paul McDonald to write a funding application for the specific needs for ISD 696.
“We are hopeful we can get a portion of that $54 million,” Colarich said.
Moving forward
Dosan updated the board on the project as June draws to a close.
The Industrial Arts building is demolished and scrap materials are being removed.
“The boiler building will come down next, along with part of the (Memorial building) media center,” he said. “We will be digging footings and putting in foundations to meet the schedule of the arrival of precast (components) in August.”
Plans are being created with Kraus-Anderson, Architectural Resources, Inc., and district officials for the new second bid package scope and budget. Bids could possibly go out as early as October, he said.
Meanwhile, students and staff will be returning to the school campus in late August with the expectation of having an effective learning environment in the midst of a construction zone.
The two school principals recently voiced detailed concerns over several educational space challenges for the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, and Erie provided a bulleted list of responses.
• Locker rooms: The plan is to price the boys locker room as designed in bid package two to be ready for the second quarter of the upcoming school year. Locker room contingencies for fall classes and sports will be similar to those used at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
• Band: There are currently 68 students enrolled in each section of the middle school and high school band classes, and with no dedicated band room, the plan is to use the Washington building auditorium. Choir classes will be held in the renovated Memorial building media center.
• Industrial Arts: The Memorial building choir room was taken over by shop classes at the end of the 2020-21 school year and will continue to be used in the new school year. Administration is exploring other options, such as using Northeast Range facilities, Vermilion Community College space, or some other vacant commercial space in the city of Ely.
• Early Childhood Family Education: The ECFE center’s permanent home will be relocated to the existing Washington building media center and will be ready for occupancy by the start of the new school year.
• Indian Education: The former ECFE classrooms in the Memorial building, other spaces in the Memorial building, or the third floor of the Washington building will temporarily be used.
• Washington building “perch:” This space on the east side of the building will be renovated and available for use at the start of the new school year. The bay window will be removed and replaced with a wall.
• Other spaces: The Head Start program, Kindergarten classrooms, elementary school office and intervention area will stay in their current spaces at the beginning of the new school year.
Karl Larson, of Architectural Resources, said work is ongoing to develop and maintain a “disruption avoidance plan” as the new school year commences.
“We will focus on safety for students and anybody who enters and leaves the school,” he said.
Board member Rochelle Sjoberg noted, “Obviously, this is not an ideal roll out. Emotions are high. Communication is going to be the biggest gap to close with some of these frustrated emotions that are going on.”