Board approves $12.5 million cost for school
CONNELLSVILLE – Five Connellsville School Board members have approved a maximum cost of $12,587,467 to build a new Springfield Township Elementary School while agreeing to an additional $398,554 for construction management services. In a 5-4 vote, board members Kevin Lape, Charles Wilson, Kenneth Nicholson, Ann Watson and David Goldblum agreed to the cost, which includes $9,157,106 alone for construction. Board members Francis Mongell, Karen Blocker, Jeffrey Harvey and Loretta Lint cast dissenting votes.
The board approved the costs associated with the project in compliance with the state Department of Education as part of its PLANCON process, which entails planning and construction.
While agreeing to the $12.5 million for construction, the same five board members also retained P.J. Dick, Inc. for construction management services for the new school as proposed, at a 12-month cost of $398,554. However, if more time is needed to complete the project, the board agreed to added costs for P.J. Dick, not to exceed $19,230 for each additional month, up to a maximum of 16 months.
Voting against the measure again were Mongell, Blocker, Harvey and Lint. Mongell said the district has hired P.J. Dick for past renovation projects, and the company, in turn, hired multiple prime contractors to do the work, costing the district even more money.
Superintendent Gerald Browell said that since P.J. Dick is a service contractor, the school board does not have to choose the lowest bidder.
Mongell said his concern lies with the $12.5 million needed to build a new school, when the district, for $11 million, instead could build one mountain school at a central location that also would house students from Clifford N. Pritts Elementary. Doing so would save the taxpayers more than $1 million, not including annual operating costs, he said.
“Consolidation would reduce the operating cost each year because you’re maintaining one building,” Mongell said.
Mongell added that, as it now stands, the district is eligible for $2 million in state reimbursement, with a new school leaving the taxpayers to pay about $7.2 million. But, a combined school would be eligible for about $5 million in state reimbursement, costing the taxpayers $6.5 million, he said.
The board last month agreed to submit to the state the required construction documents for an 83,000-square-foot building that would increase the number of classrooms and be equipped with a 10,000-square-foot gymnasium/multi-purpose facility, expanded library and cafeteria.
Another reason Mongell said he is in favor of a combined school is because the number of students has continued to decline over the years, with about 700 enrolled at both Springfield and C.N. Pritts.
“We’re at a juncture right now where our student population has decreased over 35 percent in the last 30 years,” he said. “We don’t need 11 schools anymore. We have to start consolidating.”
As far as staffing changes, Mongell said reductions are possible; however, he would propose keeping the faculty members at both schools while implementing a full day of kindergarten that the district can’t afford.
The way it stands now, Mongell said, Springfield students will be shifted during construction from the old school to the new school, making it unsafe.
In compliance with the state, the district will hold a hearing about the proposed school June 5 at 7 p.m. at Springfield. Mongell, Harvey and Lint all voted against the hearing.
The school board also conducted the following business:
– Adopted a 2002-2003 tentative budget with a $1,991,326 deficit. Revenues came in at $49,583,086 and expenditures at $51,574,412. Wilson voted against the budget.
– Unanimously elected Vicki McWilliams as board secretary to fill the unexpired term of Carol A. Malone for the rest of the 2001-2002 school year through 2004-2005, at a salary of $3,000.
– Hired Tammy Dusha as a full-time senior high school assistant principal, at an annual $62,922 salary, effective June 3.