Schools
Construction Firm for Southview Middle School Should be Chosen Within a Few Weeks
After hearing several presentations from construction management firms, the superintendent of Ankeny schools said the school board should be making a decision as to which one it feels can save the most money on phase two of Southview.
A decision on which construction management firm to hire could be settled by the Ankeny school board as early as Jan. 9.
The board received an update on the process from Superintendent Matthew Wendt at its meeting Monday night. The board is considering hiring an additional contractor is to find ways to save money on the projected $15.6 million construction of phase two of Southview Middle School.
“The school attorney is going to review (each firm’s proposal) and will get those out to the board of education,” Wendt told Ankeny Patch following the meeting. “I think the board is going to want to move this forward as soon as possible.”
Find out what's happening in Ankenyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
, the board decided in a 6-0 vote to hire the additional contractor. The deadline for proposals is today, Wendt said.
The board also heard the final two presentations from construction management firms at its Dec. 5 meeting. The first was from Des Moines-based Weitz Company, the second from Graham Construction, also of Des Moines.
Find out what's happening in Ankenyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The interest in hiring an additional contractor stemmed from . At the meeting, Shafer said he believed the district needed to bring in a construction project manager to assess project costs and find out what can be cut to save money.
At a special Oct. 27 meeting, the board heard presentations from Wausau, Wis.-based Samuels Group and Story Construction of Ames.
The final two companies up for consideration are CSI Construction Services of Des Moines and DLR Group, the architectural and engineering firm behind the new Ankeny High School and Southview Middle School. .
Wendt said each board member plans to take some time to review each proposal. He will then meet with the district facilities committee on Jan. 4. Wendt said the facilities committee hopes to narrow the choice of contractor before making a recommendation to the board.
As far as how much the hiring of an additional contractor will cost the district, Wendt said it’s still uncertain.
“The cost usually is a percentage of the project cost and the project has not been bid yet,” he said. “We won’t know the price tag until then.”
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.