111805 Building plans hinge on Tuesday vote

BY ABBY LUBY

If Bedford residents turn down the Bedford school district's request for an additional $8,903,805 to complete construction, projects would have to be scaled back, and some would have to be cut altogether.

On Tuesday, Nov 22, Bedford residents will decide whether or not to support the district so it can complete the extensive work proposed under the 2002 bond for $68 million.

"If the construction bond does not pass, decisions would have to be made on which projects would be completed and which projects would scaled back," said assistant superintendent for business Mark Betz. "If certain projects are committed — where bids are already awarded to contractors — then we have to go through with those projects."

Mr. Betz said that if the bond didn't pass, the board would have to restructure the bids for projects that haven't yet been bid.

According to Mr. Betz, work not yet bid on includes the heating and ventilation (HVAC) and electrical work at the Bedford Hills Elementary School; electrical, HVAC, alarms, public address system, and masonry at Fox Lane Middle School; masonry repair work at West Patent Elementary school, repaving; and parking lot lighting at Bedford Village Elementary School.

Some projects, like the renovations and upgrades at the Pound Ridge Elementary School, are 98 per-cent completed. The school is awaiting window replacements.

Most of the $68 million bond was earmarked to rebuild Fox Lane High School. Last summer, bids were awarded with prices locked-in until January 2006. The $8.9 million completion bond has built-in contingencies allotted for such items as anticipated increases, field conditions, projects bid and not bid, and projects bid but not awarded. The budget also includes an overall 5 percent contingency.

Work on the high school has already begun, but without that extra $8.9 million, the board is faced with the ordeal of restructuring bids that would bring the scope down and cutting back parts of the project, said Mr. Betz.

"For example, the entire science wing is slated to be gutted, with renovations for science labs and class-rooms," said Mr. Betz. "Are we going to do all of that? If we're not, then we will have to rebid that whole section and figure out how much of it we can do."

The board could choose to put a different bond out at some point if the completion bond is turned down.

"We are only seeing the numbers going up," said Mr. Betz. "Time costs more money, and most affected will be the high school because that's where most of the money will be spent."

In a Nov. 10 letter to the community, district superintendent Debra Jackson said that if the bond referendum passes, "the first thing the board of education would do is award the remaining high school construction contracts."

The next step for the board would be to bid the remaining projects at Bedford Hills Elementary School, Fox Lane Middle School, Bedford Village Elementary School, and West Patent Elementary School, she said, "as soon as possible, to help prevent any further escalations in cost."

According to the construction information on the district's Web site,

Mount Kisco Elementary is expected to be completed in December 2006 and the Fox Lane campus reconstruction is scheduled for completion in the spring of 2008.

Last spring David Schunter of Andron Construction and architect John Geddis of Geddis Partnership informed the board that the project would need additional funds because of construction costs that escalated while the district awaited delayed approvals from the State Department of Education.

The original budget for the high school was $35,219,362, but now requires an additional $5,867,852. The estimated completion date for the high school is March 2008. The plan calls for a new three—story building that will include 47 new general classrooms, 15 science labs, 11 music rooms, and extensive renovations to the existing building.

Coming in under budget is Fox Lane Middle School, with an original total cost of $2,477,318. Now the estimated required amount to complete the middle school's construction is $2,186,169, a difference of $291,149. To date, the building has had all the roofs replaced over three of the houses.

Pound Ridge Elementary School was budgeted for $5,419,110, but needs $1,170,803 for completion. At Bedford Hills Elementary School, $305,723 is needed to complete the work, above the $1,991,115 originally budgeted. At Bedford Village Elementary School, $8,360 is needed for completion, with an original budget of $1,552,320. At West Patent Elementary School, $145,649 is needed for completion; $1,077,143 was first budgeted by the district.

The original budget for Mount Kisco Elementary School was $13,156,133. Needed to complete the project is an additional $1,889,066.