HANOVER – South Shore Tech’s new building project remains on schedule for its October meeting with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) Board of Directors.
“To do that, it requires an August submission,” said Kevin Sullivan, of owner project management firm LeftField. “We are currently working with the cost estimators,” he told the SST School and Building committees on Wednesday, July 24.Kevin Sullivan, of owner project management firm LeftField,
This week – on Tuesday, July 30, three cost estimates were being reviewed to “make sure we have the most accurate and up-to-date budget information before we present to the MSBA,” said Sullivan, who was feeling under the weather and not wanting to get anyone else sick, attended the meeting virtually. He said the updated construction budget being submitted to the MSBA in mid-August will include a full schematic design to the MSBA by Aug. 29. that hasn’t changed.”
Superintendent/Director Thomas J. Hickey said the district is looking at Aug. 7 and Aug. 21 for meeting dates, in order to deliver on the information needed, as part of the MSBA submission.
Sullivan also reported that the feasibility study’s budget, with no major changes over the past month is maintaining a committed amount of 79 percent with the expended amount at 63 percent, up from 58 percent last month, based on the most recent invoices.
There is $410,228 in uncommitted funds and “upwards of $200,000” in anticipated extra services/reimbursables. Sullivan said the latter pays out to sub-consultants, site testing and other expenses for this stage of the budget.
“We believe we are still on track for that,” he said.
“The Aug. 7 meeting will be a deeper dive, as we’ll hear back on the reconciliation numbers from those three sets of cost estimates that the team is working on,” Hickey said. “Two weeks later, when the team has completed schematic design documents, we’ll reconvene to have them support that.”
The meeting on Aug. 21 will meet the Aug. 29 deadline for filing the final schematic design report to the MSBA.
“Those will be the two anchor dates for August,” Hickey said.
Addressing School Committee business, the panel – which acts as both committees, welcomed Joseph Zambello of Marshfield to his first meeting since that town joined the district.
Hickey also reviewed some language changes to the district’s Regional Agreement.
“We’ve been working on a series of language changes to our Regional Agreement, working with the Department of Education, in order to adjust how we calculate our debt share in [it],” he said.
Since a series of member towns are holding fall special town meetings, he said he would likely come back to the committee in early August to obtain the School Committee’s approval.
“There is not a lot that has been substantively changed,” he said. “It’s taken a long time to get loops of feedback from the Department of Education.”
Hickey is, however, having one with state school officials this week and another early the following week.
The goals include changing the debt share calculation by amendment to a rolling/adjustable average as well as a four-year rolling average instead of a fixed rate to improve debt loads for towns on large-debt projects such as a new school.
“The intention here is to square off this important matter before a building project vote is taken,” noted in a presentation on the Regional Appointment process. “The intention here is to change the language, to change this approach. … In a way, Marshfield entered the district under its new rules.” he said.
The genesis of the language change idea came from Whitman, which is already facing building projects for a nee middle school and DPW facility.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Hickey said. “Whether this project passes or not, this is an improvement on our Regional Agreement.”
Hanson’s special Town Meeting on Oct. 7 is the first to go to a vote on the change.