Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 16, 1993 TAG: 9304160187
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RICK LINDQUIST STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
SCHOOL ADDITION CONTRACT AWARDED
School board member George Ducker just wanted to make sure he and his colleagues were doing the right thing Thursday when they awarded a nearly half-million-dollar contract for an addition to Radford High School."I don't do this every day. These numbers scare me a little," Ducker said, just as the moderator for the special meeting, Vice Chairman Guy Gentry, called for a vote on the award to Charles Smith of Pulaski County.
Smith was the lowest of six bidders on the project, at $496,300, to build new art and music classrooms.
Superintendent Michael Wright tried to put Ducker's fears to rest. "I think we can afford this," he said. The board will use an approximately $491,000 surplus from last year's budget to pay for most of the work.
City Council has reappropriated the money to the current year. The School Board plans to cover the rest by borrowing from its maintenance account.
But, like anyone about to put lots of money on the line, Ducker wanted assurances he wasn't risking any of it. "OK, we haven't left anything out?" he asked. "I want to make sure we've covered everything."
Wright and project architect Larry Martin said they believed everything was under control, even though Smith had failed to bid separately for some storage cabinets, worth about $35,000. Martin said Smith told him he'd include them in his overall bid price.
"He knows the implications. We're not twisting his arm," Wright said.
Ducker's qualms continued until the last second. "The rest of you think this is prudent, then?" he asked as Gentry again called the vote, which was unanimous.
Gentry asked Martin to provide periodic reports to keep the board "generally informed" on the project's progress.
Before construction can begin, the contractor must reroute a sewer line that crosses the new building site. Part of the new line must run beneath the existing building. The sewer line problem has added nearly $37,150 to the project's cost.
The board's vote was contingent on the contractor's formal acceptance and a commitment from City Council to carry over any unspent funds.
Ground could be broken this spring for the addition, which will join the gymnasium, auditorium and main school building. The project should take six to eight months.
In other business, the board gave final approval to its $7.4 million 1993-94 budget and sent it to City Council.