Thursday, January 31, 2013
At a public information session Tuesday, the SSBC explained why the school building project needs additional funds.
Members of the North Reading School Committee and Secondary Schools Building Committee (SSBC) as well as representatives from PMA Consultants (project manager), Gilbane Building Company (construction manager) and Dore and Whittier (architect) were present Tuesday night at North Reading High School to explain to residents why the school building project needs additional funding. When first presented, the original project budget of $107.7 million was split into two parts: $86.5 million was the construction cost estimate and $21.2 million was for professional services, contingencies, furniture, fixtures and technology. According to Selectmen Chairman Sean Delaney, the $86.5 million construction cost estimate was wrong. Chris Carroll from PMA…
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
The Special Town Meeting and Special Election are both for the school building project.
North Reading will hold a Special Town Meeting March 18 and a Special Election March 22, both for the school building project. The selectmen voted in favor of the meeting and election Monday night. The public will be able to vote for or against an override for the school building project at the Special Town Meeting and Special Election in March. If they vote against an override, the SSBC will have to work with the existing budget. The construction documents are scheduled to be 90 percent complete in February and a new budget estimate should be available Feb. 25. The final Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) is expected by March 11, according to Superintendent Kathleen Willis. Once the SSBC has that figure, they will know how much more than the …
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Determined to save educational programs, the committee anticipates a budget shortfall as the construction documents develop.
Late in 2012, the Secondary Schools Building Committee (SSBC) learned that some line items exceeded original budget estimates for the school building project. With the construction documents for the project currently 60 percent complete, the SSBC foresees more cost overruns once the documents are 90 percent complete. Therefore, they plan to ask the town for additional funds at a Special Election and Special Town Meeting. The $355,000 cushion created by eliminating certain building features in December has been reduced to a cushion of $155,692 due to adding $200,000 in security equipment, which had previously been deferred from the budget. Selectmen Chairman Sean Delaney concurred with Superintendent Kathleen Willis and School Committee …
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
The Secondary Schools Building Committee were able to eliminate additional items from the project budget.
In November, the North Reading Secondary Schools Building Committee (SSBC) learned that several line items exceeded original budget estimates for the school building project. Since then, they have been eliminating items from the budget to bring the cost down. According to Superintendent Kathleen Willis, the goal remains to keep the project on schedule and on budget. The original estimate for the project was $108 million. After removing several items from the budget in late November, including pre-cast seat walls and roof-screens, additional items were eliminated at a meeting on Dec. 4, Willis said. After taking a look at other budget items at a subsequent meeting on Dec. 11, here are a few more that will be eliminated and the amount that …
Monday, November 26, 2012
The building project has made progress, but some line items have exceeded original budget estimates.
The North Reading School Building Project recently held their Groundbreaking Ceremony at the middle school and the project continues to make progress. However, throughout the last few weeks, the Secondary Schools Building Committee learned that some line items have exceeded original budget estimates. Additional progress has been made on the project since the last update we posted. According to Selectmen Chairman Sean Delaney, there is an architect, owner's project manager and construction manager on board and they have met with the Community Planning Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals and Conservation Commission. The construction design documents and drawings are 60 percent complete. "The next milestone will be 90 percent next month, in …
Monday, November 5, 2012
The North Reading School District held a groundbreaking for the new middle/high school on Saturday.
The North Reading School District held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new middle/high school on Saturday, Nov. 3 at North Reading Middle School. A large crowd turned out for the ceremony that featured speeches from state and local officials, live music performed by students and, of course, the groundbreaking itself. Superintendent Kathleen Willis spoke and was the MC for the event. John (Jack) McCarthy of the MSBA, Senator Bruce Tarr, Representative Brad Jones, Selectmen Chairman Sean Delaney, School Committee Chairman Mel Webster, Town Administrator Greg Balukonis and Secondary School Committee Chairman Chuck Carucci also spoke at the event. Town Administrator Greg Balukonis spoke about the uniqueness of North Reading, and said that …
Saturday, November 3, 2012
The groundbreaking will take place on Nov. 3.
The North Reading School District scheduled a groundbreaking ceremony for the new middle/high school. The groundbreaking will take place on Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. at North Reading Middle School. According to Secondary School Building Committee member Janene Imbriano, the event will feature speakers including Superintendent Kathleen Willis, John (Jack) McCarthy of the MSBA, Senator Bruce Tarr, Representative Brad Jones, Selectmen Chairman Sean Delaney, School Committee Chairman Mel Webster, Town Administrator Greg Balukonis and Secondary School Committee Chairman Chuck Carucci. High school senior Janelle Yull will sing the National Anthem and other students will sing as well. In addition, about 12 students will wear hard hats and break ground …
Monday, August 27, 2012
Check out the new traffic plan for the middle school.
Construction at North Reading Middle School has started, and the school building project is on track. According to middle school Assistant Principal Michael Maloney, the biggest change so far that will impact parents and students is the new traffic plan. With the new traffic plan, students will no longer have to walk through an active traffic lane to get to a bus or vehicle. There is a lane for students traveling to school on a bus and a separate lane for students traveling to school in a vehicle. Here are some directions provided by school administrators that parents should know before school starts: (the attached PDF shows the new pattern on a map and lists the directions.) If you notice a car accessing the parking lot during the drop…
Monday, August 13, 2012
The modular classrooms have been moved and the parking lot is being repaved.
After passing at Special Town Meeting and Special Election earlier in the year, the North Reading school building project is underway. So far, the modular classrooms at the middle school have been moved, and a temporary parking lot has been paved. The modular classrooms were moved to the other side of the middle school so construction for the high school can begin, according to Superintendent Kathleen Willis. Last Friday, a new parking lot was paved at the middle school. The parking lot is temporary and will be utilized by the staff at the middle school until they move to the old high school in 2014. Parking is in the process of being reconfigured. There will be a new drop off and pick up procedure for students, Willis said, and the …
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Here are some answers to questions about the construction company chosen for the school building project.
Welcome to You Ask... Patch Answers where we answer readers questions. We recently received questions about the North Reading school building project. Patch readers want to know how Gilbane Building was chosen for the project. Here's your answer. According to Secondary Schools Building Committee (SSBC) member Janene Imbriano, Gilbane was chosen over five other companies that submitted a proposal for the school building project. An advertisement was placed for qualified companies in early March. Six companies submitted proposals that were evaluated by a subcommittee, and Gilbane was chosen. “All 6 CM that submitted were approved and had a mandatory walk through of the two schools on March 15th. The RFP was issued to all 6 CM and requested …
JIM
8:48 am on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
John Intorcio - Thank You for the snide comment / answer SNIDE (Webster : slyly disparaging : insinuating ). I also have a dictionary. Are You on the commitee ? more ›