Aug 10, 2010 By Patty Yauger 4 min read

CONNELLSVILLE – It appears that the Connellsville Area School Board will take action Wednesday on whether it will proceed with the high school renovation project or trim the scope of the work, according to discussions Monday at the board work session. Director Dr. Paul Means, who also chairs the building and grounds committee, declined to request motions be added to the Wednesday agenda to approve the bids, stating that any approval or rejection is contingent upon the figures presented at the bid opening taking place earlier in the day.

Last month, the board moved to reject four bids it had received for the general construction work when the figures showed the cost at more than $35 million and opted to advertise for additional bids.

“I’m hoping (the bids) come in at budget or under budget,” he said. “We had a budget we could live with.”

Means said that an acceptable total budget would be within $57 or $58 million.

Although the board rejected the first round of general construction bids, it opted to hold the bids received for other aspects of project.

The low bidder for the HVAC contract was Hranec Sheet Metal Inc. of Uniontown, submitting a cost proposal of $7.75 million; Whitby Inc., also of Uniontown, for the plumbing contract at $4.21 million; A-1 Electric Inc., was the low bidder for the electrical contract at $6.2 million; Canfield Development Inc. of Pittsburgh, for the asbestos abatement at $258,000; Todd Devin Food Equipment submitted the lowest bid for the food service portion of the project at $877,200 and Main Line Commercial Pools Inc. was the low bidder for the construction of the pool for the high school project at $1.8 million.

Should the general contracting figures not meet the approximate $30 million mark, Means said he supports returning to the drawing board to trim the scope of the project.

“If we come in where we did before, we’re going to have to restructure this project and bring it in line with what we can afford,” he said, noting that he favored that action taking place prior to the re-advertisement for bids. “We all agree we need something done. But, what we can afford and what we’re looking at are two different things.

“We have to live within our means.”

The board is also faced with making a decision as to how the district will pay for the project, should it decide to move forward.

Former board member Ed Zadylak questioned the panel about an earlier directive to Crabtree, Rohrbaugh and Associates to determine cost savings to plans submitted by the administration, directors and the public.

Means said that the rebidding process had slowed the Mechanicsburg firm from having the figures to the board. However, he speculates “rough figures” to be presented at the Wednesday meeting.

The plans offered various ways for the district to cut overall costs that would facilitate the repayment of any loans secured for the high school project. The bulk of the plans included the closure of schools.

Means said that next year the district unlikely will be able to trim $500,000 from its budget as it did this year.

“We’re still waiting word on the state pension crisis and I read in the paper that the governor is considering cutting basic education funding,” said Means. “There is not going to be much wiggle room in the budget next year.”

The board does appear likely to re-apply for the no-interest Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) through the state Department of Education. The district has applied in previous years, but has not been accepted into the program.

Means, meanwhile, said that he is cautiously optimistic about the Wednesday bid opening.

“We’re all hoping for good news,” he said.

In other business, the board is poised to take action in the following matters:

n Authorize approximately 50 to 60 members and staff of the Falcon football team to attend Jumonville Christian Camp and Retreat Center Aug. 22-25 at a cost of $136.50 per person.

n Approve an agreement with Keystone Educational Consulting Group for services effective Aug. 11 through June 1, 2011, at a cost of $32,500 to be paid with federal stimulus funding received by the district.