Cost revised for high school gym project

Williamson Shriver Architects submitted revised cost estimates for the original design plan for the Berkeley Springs High School Building C (gymnasium building) NEEDS project renovations. They also revised the cost estimates for the new west and north entry design options.

The new revised cost for the original project is $4,081,059. The former cost was $4,023,690.

Costs for line items such as general conditions, exterior façade renovations, electrical renovations and the new heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) were slightly higher in the revised original project than what was originally submitted to the West Virginia School Building Authority.

The original project included gym floor and bleacher replacements, new lockers, restroom/shower renovations, the new heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, new ceilings and lighting, interior door and exterior window and door replacements, fire alarm upgrades and data and telephone system renovations.

Other work included cleaning exterior masonry, new gutters and downspouts, painting and making the building handicapped-accessible.

Revised option costs
The roof replacement had been mistakenly left in the cost estimates for the west entry and north entry alternatives, which affected other project fees.

The revised west entrance expanded project cost is $5,571,225. The new expanded north entry project cost is $5,797,801.

The west entry alternative was originally estimated at almost $6.35 million and the north entry option was placed at more than $6,576 million.

The architects had been asked what could be done with the building if money wasn’t an issue and school needs were considered.

New estimate requested
The Morgan County School Board has asked the architects for a third cost estimate. This new west entrance estimate would involve leaving the weight room/training room addition out of the project and keeping the weight room upstairs, said School Treasurer Nancy White.

Removing the weight room/training room addition would cut around $950,000 from the project and get it closer to a $4.5 million price and the original project cost, White said.

Original entry options
The original west entry option included creation of a large lobby, an expanded entrance vestibule and restrooms built out on either side. It featured four locker rooms, four offices, the weight room/training room addition and the concession stand moving to a corner outside wall.

Two north entry options were also presented previously that had different locker room configurations and weight room placements. The north entry allowed the gymnasium building entrance to be seen from the new main building reception area.

The school board needed to consider all renovations options before any work proceeded. White was sure it would be a topic of discussion at the December 4 school board meeting.

Project funding
The school board received $2.2 million from the School Building Authority for the original project. They were approved for an $824,000 Qualified Zone Allocation Bond (QZAB) no-interest loan, which is included in their $2 million local match for the original project, White said. The project match was originally $1.176 million.

They have two other QZAB loans, each with annual payments which total $114,000. One loan will be paid off in 2016 and the other in 2018, she said. The plan was to make the smallest possible payments on the third loan and just pay its interest until the first two loans were paid off.

An additional lease purchase arrangement was also being considered for funding where the collateral would be the entire project, White said.

White said the school system also had about $260,000 in their capital project fund that could be used for funding.

They had looked at a possible bond issue for funding the local match for the renovations, but that was out, she said. The special levy rate will be considered at a budget workshop in March.

Timeline
The school system is now incurring costs on the project with the architects. They will also have to hire a clerk of the works and arrange construction insurance, White said. They won’t go to bid until March and hope to have all the bid documents ready by April.

They would probably start construction in April or May after basketball season. The construction could be completed in eight months, she said. It could take longer if the work is done in phases.

The building is used extensively by the community, White noted. The renovations project would cause a lot of things to be displaced at the high school, including the Morgan County Fair and basketball games.

They would probably have to move some events to the middle school and use the old cafeteria for physical education classes.