This document provides an overview of the key steps involved in starting a capital construction project for a school district, including assembling a team, determining the scope of work, going through the referendum process, designing plans, bidding and construction, and options for financing. It discusses challenges schools face with tight budgets and the importance of maintaining facilities. The presentation outlines assembling stakeholders, conducting facility assessments, prioritizing needs, obtaining approvals, and overseeing the construction process while managing costs and schedules. Creative financing options like EPC contracts, EXCEL programs, grants, FEMA funding, and converting to primary electric are presented.

1. From the Ground Up:
Getting Your Capital
Construction Project Started
Presented by
Michael Shilale, AIA, LEED
Architect

2. Outline
• Getting Started - Overview
• Assembling Team
• Determining Scope of Work
• Referendum
• Design and Documentation
• NYSED
• Bidding and Construction
• Creative Financing
• Pitfalls – What to watch for

3. Struggling budgets / Post 2% Cap
• Staff reductions
• Program reductions
• Reduction/Elimination of Capital
Reserve Accounts
• Consolidations/Closings
• Defer Maintenance/Capital
Projects

4. Importance of
Maintaining/Upgrading Facilities
• Avg school bldg in US 42 yrs old*
• 75% built before 1970 *
• “ The Majority of our Nation’s Schools
have Inefficient Mechanical and
Electrical Systems, Leaking Roofs and
Inadequate Windows and Security
Systems.” *.
• Section 155.1
* USDOE Report “Condition of America’s Schools

5. “First we shape
our
environments,
thereafter our
environments
Winston
Churchill
shape us”

11. Effective schools
• Teachers
• Parents
• Environments

12. Why?
• Extend life of materials and
systems
• Reduce maintenance and
upgrade costs
• Reduce operating costs
• 7.5 B annually on energy (more than on
textbooks and computers combined)
• High quality learning
environments - 15% of our lives

13. Assemble Team
• Board of Education
– Facilities Committee
• Architects/Engineers
• Parent/Teacher Associations
• Community Groups

14. Board of Education
District Facilities Committee
• Responsibility is to study and make
recommendations to BOE:
• Facilities Assessment – BCS
• Walk the Buildings

15. RFP for Architects, Engineers
Construction Managers
• RFP process is not a bid
• Can use Quality Based Selection
Process (QBS)
• Similar to Attorney or
Accountant Procurement

16. North Rockland Central School District
Creatively Funding Capital Projects
www.nysqbs.org

17. Scope of Work
• Facility assessments
• Program needs
• Community needs
• Prioritize needs

18. Facility Assessment
• Building Condition Survey’s
– (RESCUE – 2010)
– Health and Safety items !
• Five Year Plans
• Facilities Committee
• District Needs
• Existing Building Evaluations –
FP-EEB !

19. Scope of Work
• Document District Priorities
• Determine Preliminary Budgets
– Hard Costs
– Soft Costs
• Present to BOE and Community
• Encourage Feedback - Not a
linear process

20. Pre-Referendum
• BOE action
• SEQRA before the vote
– http://www.dec.ny.gov/regs/4490.html
• Bond Counsel
• Outreach
– Surveys
– Task Force
– Meetings

21. Design Development and
Construction Documentation
• Complete Documents to Further
Define Scope of Work
• Pre-Referendum work usually
only part of Schematic Design
• Expect revisions in scope/costs
• Budget’s Fixed/Scope’s Change

22. Cost Control

23. NY SED
• AHJ – Building Department
• Letter of Intent
• Building Permit - when required
– Pure site work
– Playgrounds
– Bleacher - Grandstands
– Small storage structures < 350 sf
– Special structures - i.e. flagpoles
• Inspections
• Supervision
– Clerk of the Works, CM

24. NY SED
• Documentation Required:
– State Historic Preservation Office Review
– Existing Building Evaluations EEB
– Contract Documents (Drawings and
Specifications)
– Building Permit Application
– Five Year Plan
• BCS Health and Safety Items

25. Emergency Projects
• Must require immediate corrective
action that cannot wait
• No need to advertise bids
• May not need multiple proposals
• Drawings and Specifications required
• SED approval required

26. Hazardous Materials
• Environmental Assessment
– Asbestos
– Lead Paint
– PCB’s
• AHERA reports
– In 1986, the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA)
was signed into law, requiring public and private non-profit
primary and secondary schools to inspect their buildings for
asbestos-containing building materials
• Update every three years

27. State Building Aid
• Reconstruction, Additions and
New Buildings
– BAU Calculations
• Payable over 15, 20 or 30 yrs
• Project > $10,000 to be eligible
• District Aid Ratio
• 100K exception
http://www.p12.nysed.gov/facplan/publicat/building_aid_guidelines_072804.html

28. Creative Financing
• EPC
• EXCEL
• Grants
• FEMA
• Leasing
• Primary Electric

29. ENERGY SAVING
PERFORMANCE CONTRACTS
• No cost to taxpayers
• No referendum
• Qualifies for Building Aid
• ‘Green’ your buildings
• Improved test scores
• Increased productivity
• Reduced absenteeism

30. ENERGY SAVING
PERFORMANCE CONTRACTS
• All risks and
responsibilities of any
Construction Project
• District Priorities need to
be made clear
• Construction quality more
difficult to control
• Measurement and
Verification is important to
assure savings

33. EXCEL
Expanding our Children’s
Education and Learning
• Use to fund capital
improvements not eligible
for EPC or other strategies
• No cost to taxpayers
• Qualifies for Building Aid
• Building Aid Increases
Capital Dollars of EXCEL
project at no cost to District

34. EXCEL
Expanding our Children’s
Education and Learning
• Need voter approval
• Limitations on what type of
projects can be funded

35. EXCEL
Expanding our Children’s
Education and Learning
• Include Building Aid in Project total?
• Calculations
District EXCEL Aid $2,600,000
Building Aid Ratio 53%
Total Building Aid $1,378,000
Total Capital Project $3,978,000

36. NYS DEC GRANT
• The result of consent
decree from NYS DEC
• Competitive application
• Qualifies for Building Aid
• Energy Modeling showed a
40% reduction in fuel use
• Hybrid boiler design to
permit interruptible gas
service

37. NYS DEC GRANT
• Cost to apply
• No guarantee of funding

40. FEMA FUNDING
• Storm flooded baseball field
• Federal Disaster area declared
• Filed with FEMA
• Qualifies for Building Aid
• Field restored and drainage
improvements
• FEMA conducts information
seminar
• http://www.nysasbo.org/no
de/8221

41. FEMA FUNDING
• Must be a declared emergency
• Long time frame
• Federal and State oversight
• Will only pay for remedial
work based FEMA estimates
• Must work with state
emergency office SEMO
• Must spend the money first
and then be reimbursed.

44. LEASING
• No Voter Approval
• Can pay for bleachers, solar
panels and even
‘temporary’ classrooms
• Great for BOCES

45. LEASING
• Still a construction project
• Even if not going to SED
should still have expert
oversight and inspection
• More difficult to control
quality on modular space
contracts

46. CONVERSION TO PRIMARY
ELECTRIC SERVICE
• Many electric services over
40 years old
• One District - Two services
failed in last 10 years
• Planned service upgrade
permits conversion
• Payback under 15 years
• Qualifies for Building Aid

47. CONVERSION TO PRIMARY
ELECTRIC SERVICE
• Voter approval required
• Must lay out initial funding
• Transformer will be district
owned
• Underground excavation
has risks

49. Haverstraw Middle
School
kWh Estimated Commodity
Typical Month Usage /Month 35,000 Charge Secondary Primary
KW ¢ per
Demand 125 0.05 kWh 0.0498
Typical Typical
Month Typical Month Typical
Secondary Service Summer Month Primary Service Summer Month
June-Sept Oct-May June-Sept Oct-May
Typical Monthly
Totals $3,947.63 $3,328.03 Typical Monthly Totals $3,394.45 $2,804.45
Typical Savings
per Month $553.18 $523.58
Typical Savings $6,401.4
per Year 1

50. Bidding
• Wage Rate Requirements
• Wick’s Law
• GML Public Bidding
Requirements
• Advertise
• Lowest ‘Responsible’ Bid
• Alternates

51. Construction Phase
• Supervision!
• Pre-Construction Meeting
• Application for Payments
• Payroll Certifications
• Schedule
• Substantial Completion
• Certificate of Occupancy
• Final Completion
• Post Construction – Warranty
Review

52. Cautions?
• Scope items, EEB, BCS/HS
• Change Orders
– Errors and Omissions
– Unforeseen Conditions
– Scope changes
• Substitutions
• Budgets
• Delays –
– ‘No damage for delay clause’

53. What questions can we
answer for you?

54. Thank You