March 4, 2020 at 4:31 p.m.
School Board accepts bids on sports complex project
School Board accepts bids on sports complex project
The main bids were for general site construction (contract A), building construction (contract B) and for the artificial turf for inside the dome. The board also approved three alternate bids totaling $327,195.28, bringing the total of all work bid out to $6,542,662.28.
When coupled with the $1,890,881 being paid to St. Louis based Arizon Building Systems' for the manufacture of the dome membrane or outer cover, the total cost of the project has reached $8,433,543.28.
Motions to accept the three base bids and the alternate bids each passed 7-1 with Ann Eshelman casting the lone nay votes. Mary Peterson was absent from the meeting.
In June, the school board voted to authorize up to $5.7 million from the general fund to be earmarked for the dome and sports complex as a way to provide student athletes more room to practice inside during inclement weather, especially in the spring. It was announced Monday that the Hodag Schools Foundation has raised just over $2 million in private donations.
This left a $733,543.28 difference between what the board allocated and what had been raised in private donations.
John Kneer, president of the Rettler Corporation, who the board hired to manage the construction of the project, said the bids were very competitive for the two main contracts, which were formally opened Feb. 18.
"How close the bids were demonstrates how detailed the numbers were," Kneer said.
For contract A, which not only includes leveling the fill material being brought in to build up the site but also the drainage system, utility work, paving and curb work in the expanded parking lot, received three bids. Musson Brothers submitted the low bid of $2,614,727.07, while Peterson Companies of Chisago City, Minn. Submitted the second lowest bid. Kneer did not mention who made or amount of the third bid.
"We did bid out four separate alternates for contract A," Kneer said. "The alternates were the varsity softball field upgrades, that was the first alternate. The second alternate we bid out was the second 200 foot JV softball field. The third alternate we bid out was the 200 foot JV softball field upgrades to the base field. And then alternate A4 was the construction of a JV baseball field west of the high school."
The alternates became the basis for a second motion the board approved.
Contract B, which consists of the construction of the addition to the present concession/restroom building at the stadium that will be the main entrance to the dome, constructing the concrete grade beam that serves as the anchor for the dome, the storage building that will be adjacent to the dome and other work, generated four bids. There were also alternates for construction of a ticket booth, relocating the entry arch and installing pedestrian lighting around the dome and on the path leading back to the high school.
S.D. Ellenbecker of Athens, Wis. submitted the low bid in the amount of $3,166,850. The second lowest bid was received from Huotari Construction of Athens, Wis. in the amount of $3,270,297. Kneer didn't name who made or the amount of the other two bids, only noting they were higher than the other two bids.
Kneer recommended the board accept the low bids on both contracts.
"We have reviewed their bids and we approve their numbers," Kneer said. "We did qualify all of the bids and found them to be very close," Kneer said. "Mussons did come in under the other two bids by about 9-10 percent. All of the building bids were very, very close to each other."
He said he has talked to both contractors to discuss ways to lower the costs of their respective parts of the project where possible in what he termed "value engineering items."
"Both contractors are very open to that exercise, should it be necessary," Kneer said.
The artificial turf quote of $319,088 was submitted by Sprinturf LLC, which installed the turf in Mike Webster Stadium, and also included a few alternates.
Board member David Holperin acknowledged that there "were a lot of moving parts" in the entire project, but asked for Kneer's "professional opinion" on how the bids came in compared to what the board was originally told.
"We had obtained the final shop drawings from Arizon, which their architects had been working on right up to bid day when we put these out to bid," Kneer said. "So we did have a moving piece all the way through, with addendums right up to bid day. Just compiling everything, we're very happy with how close the bids were. We did get some feedback from contractors that the plans and specifications read very clearly and were very informative. From the last number that you saw, we are tracking a little bit higher than what we did put in front of you, and that is due to some of the moving parts, if you will, identifying some site issues, a few service issues we wanted to include to make everything right to make it work as it should as a brand new facility."
He said some additions to the plan that increased the cost centered around electrical additions and the addition to the concession/restroom building.
Mike Roberts, chair of the capital projects ad hoc committee that has been involved in the planning of the project at every step, acknowledge that the cost of the bids is slightly higher than what the board had been told earlier in the process.
"We kept out the equipment items for now because we are over budget," Roberts said. "Each sport court flooring for the hard (tennis) courts is about $50,000 a court. So that is where the $200,000 comes from if you do all four courts. Stuff we need for all our spring sports, and even some winter stuff, would be all inclusive in this."
He said the court flooring to turn the tennis courts into volleyball or basketball courts could be added later.
"We didn't include them here because we're already over budget," Roberts said. "We tried to get it down as low as we can."
He said that the private donations have gone from $1.2 million when the board originally approved the $5.7 million contribution from general fund has increased to $2 million.
"Our hope was that everything would come in under $7.5 million," Roberts said. "Remember we had contractors throwing different numbers at us to put those initial numbers together, they weren't design numbers."
He noted that since the plans were finalized, the parking lot has doubled in size, increasing the demolition costs. Roberts said that the parking lot would have been done regardless of if the complex was built as the third phase of the improvements to the stadium. He said the electrical and costs for the connector building between the concession/restroom building and dome were much higher than originally thought.
Roberts also noted that due to the increased costs, the money that was going to be put in a special fund for maintenance of the complex would not be there this year. He was hopeful that would be set up in the next year or two, as the money won't be able to be used for five years by state law.
Robert Thom, Director of Business Services for the district, said the difference from the original estimate of the cost and the final bid cost for the project could either be covered by any savings realized in the 2019-2020 district budget or from the general fund.
School Board president Ron Counter was also optimistic that Rettler will be able to find some cost savings as the construction progresses.
"I have confidence in Rettler to be able to get this cost down," Counter said.
While the second motion gave the green light to upgrades to the softball fields such as including dugouts and improved fencing, it will not include lighting at this time. Kneer said the upgrades will run the electrical service to where the lights could be installed at a later date as fundraising allows.
A date for the formal groundbreaking ceremony for the project is still being finalized. Superintendent Kelli Jacobi said it is hoped that as many of the donors as possible will be able to take part. Actual site preparation will begin as soon as the frost is out of the ground.
The dome is expected to be completed by the end of September of this year and the softball fields will be useable in the spring of 2021 to allow time for the sod to firmly take root.
Jamie Taylor may be reached via email at jamie@rivernews online.com.
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