South Windsor Public Building Commission
Minutes – Regular Meeting – April 10, 2014
Members Present: Howard (Hap) Fitts, James Neary, Kenneth Jeski, Carol Kelley, Charlie Lyons, Tim Wentzell and Edward O’Connell
Also Present: BOE Representatives, David Joy, Chris Chemerka, and Patrick Hankard
Chairman Fitts called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM.
Approval of Minutes: A motion was made by James Neary seconded by Carol Kelley to approve the minutes of the April 3, 2014 meeting. Motion approved unanimously.
Chairman Fitts requested information from Mr. Hankard as to the process for the development of the budget numbers for the referendum. Mr. Hankard advised that the district worked with Friar Associates who utilized the state of CT formula with regard to program and enrollment numbers. The budget was modified several times and validated by Newfield Construction. Chairman Fitts noted that the commission would need to review the details regarding those numbers.
Mr. John Butkus, Senior Program Manager of Arcadis provided the commission with an overview of the services provided by their company in relation to project management. In response to a question posed by Mr. Neary regarding cost estimates for their services, Mr. Butkus advised that Arcadis would tailor their services to the scope required by the commission, noting that he could work to define the needs to come up with an appropriate proposal. Chairman Fitts thanked Arcadis for their presentation.
Ms. Chemerka noted, for the commission’s benefit, that the purchasing policy for the Town states that purchases over $5,000 would require a bid process, however, encouraged them to discuss directly with the Town Manager, as that was her interpretation.
Mr. Jon Winikur, Principal, Strategic Building Solutions provided a PowerPoint presentation regarding the services they could offer to the commission with regard to project management.
Mr. Winikur and his team responded to commission member questions. Mr. Lyons questioned the financial tracking system in place, to which the group responded that they utilize an elaborate excel-based system and would report to the commission on a monthly basis as well as reconcile with the town’s records. Mr. Wentzell questioned the services provided by an owner’s rep and those of the architect and overlap, if any. Mr. Winikur explained the evolution seen in the industry regarding construction projects and noted that in some states it is a law that owner’s reps are hired to manage projects that utilize public funding. He also noted that SBS would ensure that the scope of services is not redundant to the architect’s services, but complimentary. Mr. Neary
questioned their role in the bid specs. Mr. Sklenka advised that it is the job of SBS to manage the PBC’s process, taking the lead on bid reviews, comparing them to the budget and manage the project from an operations standpoint. Mr. O’Connell questioned the fact that SBS has 70 employees and whether they had enough staff to support this project as well as many others within its organization, to which they indicated they would. They would envision that at the outset they would assign a half time person to manage the project and that Mr. Winikur and Mr. Sklenka would also be involved.
Mr. Wentzell stated that at this time the commission would be seeking to hire a company to assist with writing the RFP for the architect, the interview process and that the Board of Education would be seeking to hire them for assistance with the ED049. He questioned what that fee would be for those services. Mr. Winikur surmised that it would be under $10,000 for those services and advised that he would send the commission their standard rate sheet. Chairman Fitts thanked SBS for their presentation
The commission members continued discussions regarding the presentations. Chairman Fitts suggested that the commission engage with SBS to provide the services discussed. He noted that he was looking to get a schedule of events and timelines from SBS.
Mr. Neary suggested that the commission review the materials presented and make a decision at the next meeting. He also indicated that he would like to see the rates before making a decision. Mr. Lyons suggested that the commission seek the advice of the town’s legal counsel.
The commission discussed the site planning and whether the Town Engineer had begun the activities of soil testing for the site. Mr. O’Connell referenced a letter written to the Town Planner regarding the Plan of Conservation and Development and open space considerations on the site. Mr. Joy advised that Dr. Carter has been in discussions with the Town Planner and the Town Engineer regarding the site and that Michelle Lipe confirmed that the Plan of Conservation and Development would not inhibit the project. Mr. Hankard noted that soil testing had not yet been done.
A motion was made by Mr. Jeski to engage Strategic Building Solutions for an amount up to $5,000 for the work discussed. There was no second. Mr. Jeski withdrew his motion.
The committee agreed to meet on Wednesday, April 23 at 6:30 PM to continue the discussions.
There being no other business to come before the meeting, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Ann M. Walsh
Clerk
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