Swank selected for Kalispell school projects
Swank Enterprises was selected last week as the general contractor for the renovation of five elementary buildings in Kalispell Public Schools.
Swank was the only company to submit a bid on the project that covers Elrod, Edgerton, Hedges, Peterson and Russell schools.
The contract amount awarded to Swank was $9.4 million, which encompasses a base bid of $9.1 million and some add alternate projects deemed necessary such as HVAC controls, some abatement of hazardous materials and flooring replacement in new or remodeled areas. They were listed as alternate projects to offer flexibility in scheduling and costs.
“HVAC controls are a necessary item, but they were split up in three different alternates because two of the buildings have an existing system in place that we’re expanding, so we did need to sole source those two buildings,” said Shane Jacobs, an architect with CTA. “The other three remaining buildings, which are Elrod, Hedges and Russell were open source and they could be bid by anyone.”
The total project cost when adding in a 4 percent contingency fund, permits, fees, furniture, fixtures and equipment, among other items, is estimated to be $11.4 million, according Jacobs, who presented the bid and budget information to trustees.
This leaves about $1.7 million for alternate projects ranging from bleachers and other gym amenities in three buildings; some window and flooring replacements; a library remodel at Edgerton, in addition to hazardous materials abatement. Alternate projects are completed as money becomes available.
“That’s typically a lot more alternates than we would have on any single project, but because it’s five projects in one, we had a lot of items we needed to split up for cost control,” Jacobs said.
Included in the overall elementary district budget was a $100,000 increase in CTA’s fees as the scope of work expanded. This was a reduced fee after the company made a $107,000 in-kind contribution. Swank also made an in-kind contribution of $60,000 to the elementary project.
In addition to the elementary schools, Swank is the general contractor for the Flathead High School and Linderman Education Center renovation projects that are part of a high school district bond issue.
Remodeling the five elementary schools is part of a $25.3 million elementary district bond issue that includes the new Rankin Elementary under construction on Airport Road. The district is also completing some deferred maintenance projects in-house at Kalispell Middle School.
Rankin is about 55 percent completed and is anticipated to open in August, according to Lane Huffman, project manager with Langlas and Associates.
The final bid packages for the Rankin project were also approved by trustees Tuesday. This included furniture, fixtures, equipment, playground and landscaping work.
About $16.5 million is budgeted for the new elementary, which includes a contingency fund that currently stands at roughly $350,000 according to Erick Enz of Axiom Builders Group.
As the project costs evolve, the district continues to work toward maintaining contingency money, reviewing available funds and curbing expenses.
In 2016, when the district sent out mailers to voters containing pre-bond information the district had estimated spending $15.2 million on the new school. On the five elementary schools, it had estimated using about $6.3 million for remodeling expenses and $3.4 million to complete deferred maintenance. At Kalispell Middle School the district looked at spending $412,200 for deferred maintenance projects.
Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.