School construction project keeps moving along

The Yuma-1 Board of Education received a lengthy report on the district’s $32 million renovation/expansion project, funded by a BEST Grant and property taxes, Monday night during its regular monthly meeting.

An updated timeframe was provided. The board was told the renovation of the Commons is set to be completed by December 3, one day before the first winter sports events at YHS. The rest of the “center section” of the old school is set to be completed December 23, as well as the western classroom wing from the FCCLA room to the south.
The overall final completion is set for January 28.
Chad Rayl with owner’s representative Project One told the board the builder’s contingency is at $168,000, and the owner’s contingency at $462,551, “so we’re sitting pretty healthy right now.” He said there were some unforeseen costs during demolition of the transportation/maintenance building, as well as for some materials. Chrisman said most at-risk parts of the project are now in the post, but something still could pop up.
Brown asked how much of that approximately $670,000 in contingencies is spoken for already. Rayl said there is a detailed open items list with Neenan Archistruction that is reviewed regularly. There is some work recommended by inspectors to be done, such as duct work and insulation above a portion of the auditorium. Rayl said there is about $39,800 currently spoken for out of contingencies, and eventually it will be about $61,000 total.
Chrisman told the board that inspection of the exterior of the “old” part of the school revealed there are cracks in the stucco that could lead to water damage problems in the future. The district was wanting to paint and fix up parts of that exterior so it blends in well with the new parts of the school. However, the stucco repair work increases the cost.
Rayl said early estimates put it at about $250,000. Rayl and Chrisman told the board they are not sure yet if the work can be added in the BEST Grant scope of work, but feel like there is a good chance the Colorado Department of Education will approve it. The work would have to be done in the spring, after the rest of the project is complete.

They also talked about the northwest corner of the YHS campus, where Neenan’s construction trailers say, being turned into a gravel parking lot for overflow parking. They proposed adding in more curb and gutter and other barriers to keep it separated from the new paved parking lot so the paved lot would not be damaged by gravel being dragged into it. There also is a plan for adding some landscaping to the northwest lot.
The board was asked to prioritize what would should be done. Board members were in agreement that the curb and gutter at the northwest lot, and the stucco work should be the top priorities.