The Niles-Park Ridge District 64 Board of Education considered construction projects for this summer, approving one and holding off on approving two more, during its Feb. 23 meeting.
The board approved the contracts for Phase II of the Field Elementary School construction. It also considered projects that would install a new divider wall at Washington Elementary School and replacing the current phone system throughout the district. While the board was originally supposed to vote on the latter two projects during the same meeting, but it decided to hold off for another month due to financial concerns.
The Field School construction started in the summer of 2014. The project was divided into two phases. During the first phase, the building’s heating, air conditioning and heating systems were replaced.
According to board documents, Phase II involves roof work and roof replacement, replacing current gutters with new aluminum gutters and replacing interior ceiling tile on the southeast wing of the building. The plans also called for potentially installing a system that would heat the gutters during winter, which would keep ice from blocking them. The project is expected to start in June and be completed by the end of August.
During the meeting, the board considered a total of four contracts dealing with three different aspects of the construction work – general construction, roofing, masonry and electrical work. The Mt. Prospect based Nicholas & Associates Inc, which handles construction planning and design on the district’s behalf, sent out bids and recommended winning bidders. It was up to the board whether to approve those recommendations. To speed up the process, the board chose whether to approve all four contracts in one vote.
The district originally estimated that Phase II would cost between $1,373,800 – $1,523,800, depending on whether it would include heating in the gutters. The total cost of the four contracts that came up before the board was $1,998,683. Those contracts don’t include installing heated gutters. The cost of the project will be covered entirely through proceeds from recent bond sales.
Board member Dan Collins expressed concern about the roofing contract for the project. He noted that there were only two bids, and the first bid was over a million dollars larger than the second. Indeed, according to board documents, L. Marshall Inc. bid $1,987,000 while Metalmaster Roofmaster bid $948,983. Nicholas & Associates recommended the later.
Collins worried that there weren’t enough choices, asked if it would be possible to go out to bid for the roofing contracts again.
Nick Papanicholas Jr., the vice president of Nicholas & Associates, explained that the relatively small number of bidders isn’t unexpected, since there aren’t usually many contractors who are qualified to do the kind of work the project required.
Board President Tony Borrelli asked if bidding again would attract more bidders than the previous round. Papanicholas replied that it was unlikely.
Collins made a notion that the board would only vote on general, masonry and electrical contracts. But with no other board member seconding him, the motion died.
The board approved the four contracts 5-1, with Collins voting against.
The board considered two other summer projects – replacement of the retractable divider wall in Washington Elementary gym and the installation of the Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone system. VoIP provides telephone service over the Internet, which costs less than traditional landline phones.
According to board documents, the district estimates that the divider wall replacement will cost $95,000, while replacing the current phone system with VoIP will cost $500,000. The actual costs won’t be clear until the bid’s returned. But whatever the costs may be, the original plan was to cover them through bond sale proceeds.
While the board was originally scheduled to vote on whether to approve the projects, Borrelli and board member John Heyde argued that the action should be postponed. According to board documents, after Phase II was completed, the district would have $2,204,363 in bond sale proceeds. Heyde said that, if the summer projects were completed, it would leave the district will less money for other projects than he originally expected.
He suggested that consideration be postponed until next month.
“Unless there’s huge time sensitivity, my suggestion is to take it back and decide if its still a priority,” he said.
Borreli said he shared Heyde’s concern. He asked Scott Mackall, the district’s Facility Management Director, whether a cheaper, more frame-like divider would be a work as an alternative to the divider wall.
“I talked to the PE staff and the consensus is that, from the educational standpoint, it wouldn’t work.” said Mackall.
In the end, the board decided not to consider the two projects after all, postponing approval until next meeting. That meeting is scheduled for March 29, at 7:30 p.m. It will take place at Lincoln Elementary School.
Igor Studenkov is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
