GENEVA – The Geneva Area City School District is getting ready to start the construction of its much-anticipated athletic facility project.
District Superintendent Dr. Paul Lombardo said if all goes well, construction will begin at the end of September.
“The area will first need to be cleared and dug to prepare for the field, track and stands,” he said of the initial work.
At its Aug. 19 meeting, the school board passed a resolution for the delegating of authority to conduct business related to the project, which the district is calling the athletic improvement project, including change order authority.
“This is a resolution to delegate authority to conduct business related to the athletic improvement project, including change orders authority,” he told the board. “So anything under $75,000, if there is a change order, this is allowing (district Treasurer) Shelly (McDermott) and myself to be able to make those decisions.”
In spelling out the rationale for the arrangement, the resolution notes that modifications to a contract or agreement that involve a change in contract price and/or contract time must be approved and executed on behalf of the board. However, to avoid a project delay and its related costs, it’s important that the board authorize a representative to approve and execute modifications required to modify the agreements, the resolution states.
“If we waited a month to make minor change orders, the project may never get done on time,” Lombardo told the board. He noted the authorization included in the resolution is very common.
Before the vote to approve the resolution, board member Beth Cybulski noted that the resolution takes into consideration the district’s overall budget and what the board has allocated toward the project.
“And we cannot go over that without board approval?” she asked. Lombardo told her that was correct.
McDermott elaborated on the rationale for the resolution.
“It might be just a $5,000 change order, and if we had to wait ‘til next meeting or hold (a) special (meeting)…it would just hold (it) up,” she said.
Lombardo said that at the board’s next meeting, it would be provided the guaranteed maximum price for the project.
“This is the total amount for the project,” he said. “You guys would approve that. C.T. Taylor (the construction manager at risk) can never go above that amount and we can never go above that amount without board approval. But any change orders within that guaranteed maximum price, under the $75,000 threshold, this (the resolution) would give us the authority to make those decisions on the fly.”
According to Lombardo, C.T. Taylor is currently reviewing all bids for the project.
Back in June, the site plan for the $5.75 million athletic facility showed home bleachers with a 400-seat student section and an 800-seat spectator section, as well as a pressbox. In the visitor section, the plans showed 500 visitor seats.
The plan also showed an eight-lane synthetic track with pole vault, high jump, long jump in front of the visitor bleachers and discus and shot put.
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