Apr 10, 2011 By Patty Yauger 3 min read

?CONNELLSVILLE — Those involved in the high school renovation project in Connellsville Area School District appeared to breathe a collective sigh of relief Thursday as base bids submitted for the project appeared to be in line with the set local budget of $45 million.

More than 25 contractors submitted bids for various aspects of the multimillion-dollar project.

This is the third time in less than a year that the board has sought cost estimates for the project.

After rejecting bids that totaled more the $61 million, the board advised Crabtree, Rohrbaugh and Associates of Mechanicsburg to downsize the scope of the project to trim the overall costs.

Jeffrey Straub, senior project manager for the architectural firm, cautioned that the figures will be reviewed and recommendations made to the board before any action would be taken to move forward.

“We’re pleased,” said Straub following the nearly hour long session that drew dozens of the contractors. “(The number of proposals) were better than we thought would come in.”

Five Pittsburgh area companies are seeking the general contracting work for the renovation project.

The base bid prices ranged from $19 million to $21 million.

Companies also were required to offer bids for specific parts of the work, including the construction of an auxiliary gymnasium, renovation of the elevator, installation of terrazzo floor covering and other items.

Some board members have indicated support for an auxiliary gymnasium as plans include the transfer of ninth grade students to the high school building when the renovations are complete.

The cost to add the gymnasium, according to the general contracting proposals, ranged from $1.5 to $1.8 million.

Six contractors offered bids for the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning contract with base bids ranging from $7.8 million to $8.7 million. The costs for the systems tied to the auxiliary gymnasium ranged from $305,400 to $360,000.

Three companies offered cost proposals for completing plumbing work with bids ranging from $2.9 million to $3.5 million while three firms are vying for the electrical contract.

The electrical bids ranged from a low of $5.7 million to $6.1 million.

Three Pittsburgh area companies offered bids ranging from $340,000 to $597,000 to remove any asbestos found during the construction project and two firms submitted cost proposals ranging from $864,000 to $924,000 for the construction of the food service department.

In a cost-saving initiative, the board opted to renovate the in-place swimming pool instead of constructing an eight-lane Olympic size pool as proposed in the original designs.

Four contractors offered bids to overhaul the pool with the proposals ranging from $1 million to $1.2 million.

Directors Kevin Lape and Gary Wandel attended the bid opening and indicated that the board would discuss the figures at the board work session on Monday.

The district has secured a $30 million bond issue in advance of the project and was advised several months ago it was eligible for a $15 million Qualified Zone Academy Bond (QZAB) – a no-interest bond issued through the state Department of Education.

It is estimated that the district would additionally receive upwards of $10 million in reimbursement from the Department of Education to reduce the overall costs.

The board will meet in regular session Wednesday.