Published: October 15, 2008 12:22 am            

NORTH TONAWANDA: $48M for schools plan unveiled

In April voters approved a $48 million bond to improve North Tonawanda city schools. Project planners on Tuesday presented their progress for members of the school board.

Architects, engineers and construction managers unveiled the preliminary plans and construction schedule at Tuesday’s school board meeting, pointing to the work slated for six schools and based on surveys conducted with administrators and others since June.

“We’re putting together estimates that will be submitted along with the drawings to the (state Department of Education),” John Ticco with construction manager Christa Construction said.

Work tentatively scheduled to begin around June 2009 can’t happen until the state Education Department approves the specs.

Estimates and approval from the state represent what Ticco indicated is the first of many phases.

Approval is expected to occur in early spring, with bidding to contractors for the many jobs set to be taken in May, and finally, construction for just two of the schools possibly beginning immediately thereafter.

“We decided it didn’t make sense to rush everything and get everything in to bid by the spring,” Ticco said.

School Board member Frank DiBernardo said he wished some of the “big ticket items” like roof replacements could all be commenced next summer, but Christa’s staggered work schedule has only work at Drake Elementary and North Tonawanda Middle School staring as early as May 2009. The middle school improvements including BOCES addition is the second most expensive single project and Drake is the least expensive. That, planners say, would represent the first phase of construction to be concluded in August 2010.

Work at the other schools, including a whopping $14.2 million for the high school wouldn’t begin until October of next year. Under the plan, the last stroke of the hammer would come down around August 2011.

The costs are only estimates and Ticco said figures will be provided along with the drawings presented to the board on Tuesday for approval.

School Board President Christine Porto took pains to make sure architect Raymond Bednarski understood problems with kids walking in the street during pick up time at Ohio Elementary School because of huge snow banks obstructing the sidewalks.

After viewing plans Bednarski displayed including an expanded parking area, separate bus loop and relocation of the building’s main entrance, discussion briefly centered on issues mentioned to the architect and what Porto asserted has been an issue for years.

Bednarski said his team has been meeting with individual school administrators for their input. He indicated the plans will continue to evolve.

“You might want to talk to the people whose kids are walking in the street trying to get to the cars,” Porto said.

In general, multiple sweeping improvements address some common areas, in addition to specifics at each building:

• Safety and security (code improvements and a focus on how people can access the buildings).

• Repairs.

• Infrastructure improvements.

• Expansion of existing infrastructure like parking lots.

• HVAC upgrades.

• Electrical and plumbing.

• Emergency systems like alarms and design intended to ease campus lockdowns in the event of an emergency.

• Handicapped and other accessibility issues.

• Technology infrastructure (connectivity for computers, white boards and overhead projectors).

Jeffrey Glatz asked if the schedule would hold true in the face of Albany’s gridlock with regard to the state Department of Education’s required approval prior to work.

“I’ve been hearing some horror stories about the time SED takes for approval,” he said.

Ticco maintained the time frame is reasonable.

“If this was last year at this time it would be a much tougher project,” he said.

Contact reporter Neale Gulley at 693-1000, ext. 114.

        

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