Colegrove School Project on Budget, But Not on Time

Retaining walls outline the new playgrounds and entrance areas at Colegrove Park Elementary School.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The new elementary school continues on budget — if not on time.

Colegrove Park Elementary School is supposed to be "substantially complete" by Wednesday but officials say it's months from being ready.

"They are clearly several months at best until completion," Kenneth J. Guyette of Strategic Building Solutions/Colliers International, the owner's project manager, told the School Building Committee on Monday. "We've been bombarded with a number of very large potential change orders within the last two weeks with a lot of time requested off that.

"That's what we're discussing with the city and the architect how to get through that issue."

The city was notifed in May that the $29.7 million renovation of the old Drury High School would likely not be ready for opening this fall. General contractor PDS Engineering & Construction Inc. had initially set a new date of Aug. 16, but that date is no longer viable.

School officials plan to begin the school year with the new redistricting in place; Colegrove pupils will start the year at Sullivan School. In the last walkthrough, Mayor Richard Alcombright said it could be the first of the year before the school opened, to give time for teachers to move into their classrooms.

The main issue for the city's officials and design team has been the lack of manpower onsite, which they believe is causing delays and putting the schedule behind. Schedules have not been adhered to and a "legitimate recovery" plan has not been forthcoming, they say.

"Manpower continues to be flat," said Guyette

Member Ronald Superneau, who has repeatedly voiced his displeasure with the company, said the penalty spelled out in the contract may not be an incentive to bring more crews on.

"They're going to end up paying more for overtime than they would the $1,000 a day they're going to be charged by us," he said.

The $1,000 a day penalty that begins on Thursday is spelled out in the contract; the penalty would be deducted from the cost of the project.

Superneau asked that a representative from the contractor appear at the next meeting and suggested the School Committee should also attend.

A representative had been expected to attend Monday's meeting.

While the ground floor needs the most work, the kitchen and dishroom are nearly done; bathrooms are also being tiled.

Major ductwork has started and two HVAC units are set to go on the roof in the next two weeks, although the committee thought that optimistic. Masons are now working on the east side of the building - including the old Drury wall, gym and new elevator shaft.

Windows and window trim, including Corian windowsills, are still going in, and the installation of roof parapets and copper flashing are ongoing.

The original terrazo tile is being refurbished along with the wood floors.

The most visible change at this point is the excavation and the concrete footings and walls for the playground and main entrance area on the south side.

"We're doing really well on change orders," Guyette said. "Right now over 90 percent are eligible for reimbursement by the MSBA. Right now, we are tracking on budget."

The Massachusetts School Building Authority has been frequently onsite but has stayed out of any dealings over delays, saying it's a city issue, he said.

"They love the project, they really do," Guyette said. "It's a showpiece because there aren't that many historic projects."

North Adams to Begin Study of Veterans Memorial Bridge Alternatives

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:21AM / Monday, April 15, 2024

Mayor Jennifer Macksey says the requests for qualifications for the planning grant should be available this month. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Connecting the city's massive museum and its struggling downtown has been a challenge for 25 years. 

 

A major impediment, all agree, is the decades old Central Artery project that sent a four-lane highway through the heart of the city. 

 

Backed by a $750,000 federal grant for a planning study, North Adams and Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art are looking to undo some of that damage.

 

"As you know, the overpass was built in 1959 during a time when highways were being built, and it was expanded to accommodate more cars, which had little regard to the impacts of the people and the neighborhoods that it surrounded," said Mayor Jennifer Macksey on Friday. "It was named again and again over the last 30 years by Mass MoCA in their master plan and in the city in their vision 2030 plan ... as a barrier to connectivity."

 

The Reconnecting Communities grant was awarded a year ago and Macksey said a request for qualifications for will be available April 24.

 

She was joined in celebrating the grant at the Berkshire Innovation Center's office at Mass MoCA by museum Director Kristy Edmunds, state Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver, District 1 Director Francesca Hemming and Joi Singh, Massachusetts administrator for the Federal Highway Administration.

 

The speakers also thanked the efforts of the state's U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey, U.S. Rep. Richie Neal, Gov. Maura Healey and state Sen Paul Mark and state Rep. John Barrett III, both of whom were in attendance.