Oxford school district seeks voter approval for project
OXFORD – The Oxford Academy School District will be asking residents to authorize a $4,650,000 Phase I capital project in a special vote on Sept. 24. The school board adopted a resolution last week calling for the vote on the proposed project, which will tackle a number of health, safety and code issues throughout the district.
According to Superintendent Randall Squier, the district will take advantage of a portion of the EXCEL grant money designated by the New York State Education Department to cover the local share of the project’s cost. There will be “no impact on the current tax levy,” Squier stated, at the July 13 meeting of the board.
The remainder of the district’s EXCEL money, or approximately $698,000, will be “available for any future products” if the board decides to pursue a second phase project at a later date, the superintendent explained.
Since the board announced in March that they would be scaling back plans for a larger scale building project to focus instead on the district’s most pressing needs, they have been working to define the scope of the Phase I project.
On at least two occasions they met with members of the Facility Advisory Committee and representatives from the Bernier Carr Group, the architectural consulting firm retained for the project, to finalize the list of items which will be included in the project. Each potential line item was weighed to determine if it was of a “nuts and bolts” nature pressing enough for phase I, or if it fell into the “bells and whistles” category and could therefor wait for a later phase II project. At a joint meeting on June 29, they finalized that list, which is available on the district’s website, www.oxac.org.
According to information provided by BCG, the lion’s share of the project’s cost will be spent on Middle School building, which will account for just over $2.1 million of the estimated construction total. $404,918 and $309,225 has been allotted for work at the Primary and High Schools, respectively, for a total estimated construction cost of roughly $2.8 million.
The total estimated maximum cost the board is asking voters to approve represents that construction total plus escalations to allow for inflation over the course of the project, according to BCG Chairperson Pamela Beyor. Also factored into the total cost estimate is a 15 percent contingency factor, and 25 percent for incidentals, which includes the project’s soft costs.
“We’re really looking at even from today, a three year period,” she said, explaining the need for these adjustments. “We wanted to make sure we had plenty of safety net.”
According to Beyor, if the project is approved by voters in September, the BCG team will begin preparing detailed design documents which will be submitted to SED for approval in May of 2010. Realistically, she said, it could take up to four months for the project to be approved by the state.
“After you have SED approval, there is a bidding phase,” Beyor explained, which will happen in the Fall of 2010. Pre-construction planning will take place between December and January, with preliminary construction beginning in the early months of 2011 and heavier work waiting until students get out in the Spring.
Once construction is under way, it will take between 12 to 18 months to complete, she said.
According to Superintendent Randall Squier, the district will take advantage of a portion of the EXCEL grant money designated by the New York State Education Department to cover the local share of the project’s cost. There will be “no impact on the current tax levy,” Squier stated, at the July 13 meeting of the board.
The remainder of the district’s EXCEL money, or approximately $698,000, will be “available for any future products” if the board decides to pursue a second phase project at a later date, the superintendent explained.
Since the board announced in March that they would be scaling back plans for a larger scale building project to focus instead on the district’s most pressing needs, they have been working to define the scope of the Phase I project.
On at least two occasions they met with members of the Facility Advisory Committee and representatives from the Bernier Carr Group, the architectural consulting firm retained for the project, to finalize the list of items which will be included in the project. Each potential line item was weighed to determine if it was of a “nuts and bolts” nature pressing enough for phase I, or if it fell into the “bells and whistles” category and could therefor wait for a later phase II project. At a joint meeting on June 29, they finalized that list, which is available on the district’s website, www.oxac.org.
According to information provided by BCG, the lion’s share of the project’s cost will be spent on Middle School building, which will account for just over $2.1 million of the estimated construction total. $404,918 and $309,225 has been allotted for work at the Primary and High Schools, respectively, for a total estimated construction cost of roughly $2.8 million.
The total estimated maximum cost the board is asking voters to approve represents that construction total plus escalations to allow for inflation over the course of the project, according to BCG Chairperson Pamela Beyor. Also factored into the total cost estimate is a 15 percent contingency factor, and 25 percent for incidentals, which includes the project’s soft costs.
“We’re really looking at even from today, a three year period,” she said, explaining the need for these adjustments. “We wanted to make sure we had plenty of safety net.”
According to Beyor, if the project is approved by voters in September, the BCG team will begin preparing detailed design documents which will be submitted to SED for approval in May of 2010. Realistically, she said, it could take up to four months for the project to be approved by the state.
“After you have SED approval, there is a bidding phase,” Beyor explained, which will happen in the Fall of 2010. Pre-construction planning will take place between December and January, with preliminary construction beginning in the early months of 2011 and heavier work waiting until students get out in the Spring.
Once construction is under way, it will take between 12 to 18 months to complete, she said.
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