East Bridgewater Select Board Authorizes Construction Manager at Risk for Central Elementary School Project
School Building Committee's 10-2 vote leads to authorization as town prepares for November funding vote on new elementary school
EAST BRIDGEWATER - July 28 - The East Bridgewater Select Board unanimously authorized the School Building Committee to procure a construction manager at risk for the Central Elementary School project during a special meeting Monday evening.
The authorization allows the committee to submit an application to the Inspector General's office, a required step before beginning the procurement process for the construction delivery method. The School Building Committee voted 10-2 on June 24 to pursue construction manager at risk over the traditional design-bid-build approach.
"We need to submit an application to the OIG's office. This is the Inspector General," said Matt Gulino, owner's project manager with LeftField Project Management. "They review it and confirm, yes, this project is suitable to proceed under CM at risk."
The decision comes as the town prepares for a crucial November vote on the project's funding. The application must be submitted to the Inspector General's office by Thursday, July 31, prompting the special Select Board meeting.
Construction manager at risk differs from design-bid-build in several key ways. Under the traditional design-bid-build method, construction documents are completed before contractors submit public bids, with the lowest qualified bidder winning the contract.
The construction manager at risk approach involves an interview process similar to how the owner's project manager and architect were selected. This method provides more control over contractor selection while still requiring public bidding for certain trades like electrical work.
"With the construction manager at risk, you have a little bit more control over who you can hire," Gulino explained. "You get to kind of have a little more say in which contractor you go with just to make sure that you get the most responsible and qualified contractor on your team."
The School Building Committee chose this delivery method due to the project's complexity. The relatively small site requires extensive phasing, with the new school being built while Central Elementary remains operational.
"A lot of the site is relatively small, so there's going to be a lot of phasing kind of moving around the site," Gulino said. "It complicates things a little bit."
The project involves building the new school first, then moving students into the new building before demolishing the old school and replacing fields at that location. The construction site's proximity to the junior-senior high school adds another layer of complexity.
"It's going to be a very busy construction site, so we want to make sure we have as much control as possible, you know, for safety, security," Gulino said.
Town Administrator Charlie Seelig noted that hiring a construction manager at risk during the winter would provide additional oversight during the design process. The construction manager would work alongside architects to identify potential issues before they become costly change orders.
"If we hire a construction manager at risk this winter, we have another set of eyes working through the building plans," Seelig said. "That person has an interest in keeping the price under that guaranteed maximum price."
Historically, design-bid-build projects cost less at the time of bid but typically generate more change orders. Construction manager at risk projects build more contingency into the budget upfront but may reduce unexpected costs during construction.
Select Board member Katherine Mullen questioned which method proves more cost-effective, citing taxpayer concerns about the project's cost. Gulino acknowledged that design-bid-build is "less expensive at the time of bid" but noted that "you get more change orders typically."
The November town meeting will present voters with a specific dollar amount that cannot be exceeded, regardless of which construction delivery method is used. This number includes the town share, state share, project manager costs, architect costs, construction costs and other secondary expenses.
"That November number is the number that we will – that the townspeople have said you cannot exceed this," Seelig explained.
If voters reject the project in November, all current planning efforts would halt. The project requires approval at both the November 10 town meeting and a debt exclusion vote on November 15.
"If we don't get yeses on both of those, then it's literally we stop in our tracks," Seelig said.
The actual contract with the construction manager at risk will not be executed until after the November vote, keeping the process contingent on voter approval. The Select Board expects to review and approve that contract if the project moves forward.
The School Building Committee has been working with LeftField Project Management for approximately 18 months and recently entered the schematic design phase. Recent cost estimates from the schematic design phase show the project coming in "a little bit cheaper" than earlier projections, though officials continue working to reduce costs.