By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
Brandon Twp.— During the regular Monday Night meeting, Brian Smilnak, project architect for the Brandon Schools bond, provided an update to the board of education.
The three project packages will be going out for bid on Dec. 5, then will come back to the committee for review after the holidays, and to the board for a decision after the new year. The projects are expected to be completed in the summer of 2023.
“There will be several bid categories in these three packages, but they will be grouped in these three packages,” said Smilnak. “We think that it’s the best way to get interest from the bidders is if they group it by school, rather than by category.”
Bid package one includes projects at Brandon High School: classroom and band room HVAC, new restrooms near the performing arts center, remodeling the women’s toilet room near the performing arts center, install doors at the gym restrooms, replace damaged brick and adding gutters to the roof and replacing selected flat roof areas. This also includes pool renovations such as the scoreboard, sound system and timing system, the mechanical room piping replacement and the pool ventilation unit on the ground along the pool. The high school auditorium and gymnasium would get new sound systems. There are a few alternate projects that include theatrical lighting in the auditorium, a weight room turf surface and remodeling in the science rooms.
Bid Package two includes projects at Brandon Middle School and the exterior athletic fields: adding exterior and interior doors for bathroom access for the athletic field, adding a door to the main office to create secure entry in the vestibule, replacing turf on the football field, replacing the track surface, replacing the tennis court surface and converting the middle school baseball field into the varsity baseball field. Alternate bid items include a GMAX pad under the new football field turf and bleachers and a press box behind home plate at the baseball field.
Bid Package three includes projects at Harvey-Swanson Elementary School: classroom flooring, interior doors, wall paint, cabinets, lockers, media center upgrades, restroom remodeling, exterior doors and frames, exterior entrance upgrades, roofing and HVAC. Also, classroom and office furniture will be purchased via a cooperative purchase process for summer 2023 delivery. Alternate bid items include flooring, wall paint and door replacement in the Early Childhood Wing, as well as the Early Childhood Media Center renovations.
All three bids have alternate projects that were not originally included in the bond, and will be presented as separate bids.
“So we’ll be including those items in the bid package, but they will be separated as an alternate bid, so those prices will be able to be reviewed by the board,” he said.
Also, the parking lot work at the high school and Harvey-Swanson bid will be on hold until the January 16 board meeting, and the construction may be postponed to the summer of 2024.