Litchfield Schools Building Committee

Meeting Minutes

 

 

 

LOCATION                                                                   Litchfield Intermediate School Art Room  

 

           

DATE OF MEETING                                                     December 6, 2007         

 

 

TIME MEETING STARTED                                           7:14 PM

 

 

PERSON PREPARING THE MINUTES                          Marianne Arancio Stilson

 

 

MEMBERS PRESENT

 

1.  Jack Healy, Chair & BOS Representative                  2.  Bob Blazek

3.  William J. Buckley, Jr.                                              4.  Lynn Chapman

5.  Jeff Zullo, Treasurer & BOF Representative              6.  Mac Bramley                                    

7.  Kent Gilyard arrives at 7:41                                      8. Stacie Kavle, Vice Chair arrives at 7:43

           

            

MEMBERS ABSENT

 

1.  Gary Waugh - BOE Representative 

2.  Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

 

 

OTHERS PRESENT

George Graikoski of O&G, A. Brooks Fischer of Herbert S. Newman, Tony Crowe, Peg Perusse,  Wayne Shuhi, Alex Nardone, Frank Simone and Mike Chadukiewicz

 

 

QUORUM PRESENT                                                     Yes    

 

 

1.  CALL TO ORDER

 

Jack Healy, Chair called the meeting to order at 7:14 PM.

 

 

2.  APPROVAL OF MINUTES

 

Jack Healy, Chair asks for a motion to approve the minutes of the November 1, 2007 meeting.

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr. moved to approve the meeting minutes of November 1, 2007.

So moved.   Seconded:  Lynn Chapman

Discussion:  None

Vote: 

Abstention:  Jack Healy, Chair

Deletions/Corrections/Additions:  None

Absent:   Stacie Kavle, Vice Chair, Kent Gilyard, Gary Waugh and Leo Paul, Ex-Officio.

All Ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

Jack Healy, Chair asks for a motion to approve the minutes of the November 15, 2007 meeting.

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr. moved to approve the meeting minutes of November 15, 2007.

So moved.   Seconded:  Lynn Chapman

Discussion:  None

Vote: 

Abstention:  Mac Bramley and Jeff Zullo

Deletions/Corrections/Additions:  None

Absent:   Stacie Kavle, Vice Chair, Kent Gilyard, Gary Waugh and Leo Paul, Ex-Officio.

All Ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

 

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

None.

 

 

4.  COMMUNICATION

 

Report from Jeff Zullo on BOF Communication

Jeff Zullo stated he missed the November Board of Finance meeting but did send the Board of Finance a report and has not heard back from them.

 

 

Report from Gary Waugh on BOE Communication

None discussed.  Gary Waugh not present.

 

 

Report from Jack Healy on BOS Communication

Jack Healy, Chair reports that he has given two reports to the BOS since the last meeting.  One report was a detailed report of the finances and contingency and the other was an update on the project in general.  He stated that the BOS keep asking him about the parking lot and he has told them that the Building Committee has not made a decision yet and that he has just received the drawings from CCA and that those plans will be submitted to the Planning and Zoning Commission.  The buffer of trees is discussed in detail.  William J. Buckley, Jr. states that he would like to see the plans and vote on them.  Jeff Zullo agrees.  Jack Healy, Chair will get copies of the drawings to the members next week and also to George Graikoski of O&G. 

 

 

Correspondence

None.

 

 

5.  ARCHITECT/CONSTRUCTION MANAGER UPDATES

 

Budget (O&G)

George Graikoski of O&G hands out to the members of the Committee the following report:  Litchfield High School/Middle School & Litchfield Intermediate School Monthly Construction Manager’s Monthly Cost Control Report.  George Graikoski did not do a summary sheet for this meeting.

 

George Graikoski goes over the reports for the Middle/High School and the Intermediate School with the members of the Committee and goes over the changes to the report from the last meeting and voices his concern of the negative figures that appeared on the report after he input the information he received from Deb.  He states that he stopped finishing the report because of the negative numbers that appeared on the reports and wants input from the Members of the Committee on how to proceed.  He states that there are still some adjustments that need to be made in credits to the soft costs to the report. 

 

Kent Gilyard arrives at 7:41.

 

Stacie Kavle arrives at 7:43.

 

He feels that there should be a meeting or a sub-finance committee meeting to go over the categories and the amounts where there are negative numbers.  Jack Healy, Chair is concerned and can’t get a grasp of the finances because he keeps seeing negative numbers appear on the report each month and he does not know where they are coming from since no change orders have been approved by the Committee since last March.  He further states that he can’t make a commitment to authorize any more spending until he knows what is left to be spent.   Jeff Zullo wants to know if all the change orders are reflected in the report.  George Graikoski states that they are in the report.  Jeff Zullo is concerned because he feels the Committee does not have an understanding of the revisions and that the report should be a snap shot in time of the motions from the past meeting and that’s not what he’s seeing each month.  George Graikoski states that the report tonight reflects what he was given by Deb to input and that it may not be correct.  He feels that she may have just put numbers in different spots and that this needs to be figured out with the members of the Committee.  George Graikoski states that this report is a work in progress and that he needs the Committee’s input on some of these line items.  A very lengthy discussion ensued regarding the report and the line items and how and why they changed from last report.   A lengthy discussion ensued of the contract amounts, credits that need to be applied to them and change order disputes that need to be reflected accurately in the report.  George Graikoski did not have all his notes with him regarding certain line items so he could not accurately answer some of the questions.  Bob Blazek asks George Graikoski if all the asterisks in the report reflect that the contractor over billed the committee inappropriately or if they are approved overages.  George Graikoski states that it is a case by case basis and that in some cases it would be negotiating over billing that has not been approved.  He states that it may be a case where a change order request has been submitted but has not necessarily been approved or that the contract may disagree.  He states that he thinks that in ninety percent of the items the Committee may not be responsible for the items.  He’s not sure at this point.  Jeff Zullo is concerned that the change orders have not been frozen and that none have been approved.  Jack Healy, Chair states that he is confused and can’t approve any changes that will cost money until he has a handle on this report.  He doesn’t understand how any contractor can spend any money that has not been approved by the Committee.   William J. Buckley, Jr. again states that he thought that it was clear a couple of meeting ago that nothing is to be changed on the report without the Committee’s approval. 

 

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved that on the Intermediate School, that the funds available that are in the five parentheticals be subtracted from the projected costs and from the completed to date costs so that the parenthetical numbers will go back to zero and the other numbers will return to where they were in the previous report and then if there is a request in the form of a change order that it should be brought before the Committee for approval.  So moved.

Seconded:  Lynn Chapman

Discussion:  Bob Blazek wants to know how the Committee will know then what they are responsible for.  William J. Buckley, Jr., responds that if the Committee did not approve the work that was done that the Committee is not responsible for it.  Bob Blazek wants to know who approved any of the items that caused the negative numbers.  George Graikoski states that without going over the report line by line and his notes, he can not answer the question.  He states that this needs to be done in a working session with the Committee.  George Graikoski states that he can bring the report back to where it was with no problem but at some point what has or has not been approved needs to be gone over.  George Graikoski states that in some cases the contractors have not put the change orders on their billing because they have not been approved.  He states that he has to go through each one of these and get the change orders approved.  George Graikoski states that the software that they use puts the asterisks on the line so it is a flag for him to go back and look at the change orders of that contractor and adjust the payment application to reflect the credits that have not been approved.  He states that this will change the numbers once that is done.  A very lengthy discussion ensued on the reports again.

Vote:

Absent:  Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved that on the High School/Middle School that the line item entitled General Trades, 10-069100 which shows a negative $118,201.00 should be subtracted from the projected costs and from the completed to date costs so that it will go back to $3,085,437.00.  So moved.

Seconded:  Jeff Zullo

Discussion:  Discussion of the change orders ensued again.  George Graikoski states that there was also a motion to take the soft costs from Deb and put it in the report and when he did that it caused the negative numbers and he didn’t know what to do so he left it and brought it before the Committee tonight for direction on some of the numbers.  Jeff Zullo states that having working documents is fine but for clarity and understanding, the monthly reports should only reflect what was approved by the Committee at the last meeting.  Jack Healy, Chair states that after tonight he has no feeling at all of what the change orders are now and is concerned because of change orders that may or may not have been approved and are out there.  Further discussion ensued. 

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

It is decided by the members of the Committee to work on this report at the December 20th meeting with George Graikoski and Peg Perusse.  George Graikoski will bring all his notes, laptop and any material needed to work on this report.

 

William J. Buckley, Jr. refers to an email from Deb and discusses it with Peg Perusse and Jeff Zullo.   Peg Perusse states that she does not know if this email is in George’s report or not.  Jeff Zullo states that he and William J. Buckley, Jr. spent hours going through this and thought that all the architects’ charges were defined clearly.

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved that with respect to the High School/Middle School that line items, Architects Basic Services and Architects Special Consultants showing a negative of $90,059 and $12,170, that those numbers should be subtracted from the projected costs and the completed to date costs to bring it back to what the Committee approved and ask Peg Perusse to provide the Committee for next meeting an explanation of what the $90,059 and the $12,170 is for.   So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

Peg Perusse will have the reports and explanations for the next meeting.  She states that she will sit down with Deb and get the breakdown of the numbers.

 

 

 

 

Schedule Update (O&G)

Jack Healy, Chair wants to know about the Intermediate School.  George Graikoski states that all the work is completed and they are punch listing.  In the new addition, the library and the music room and the gym vestibule, the building inspector has not issued the TCO yet.  He states that he has substantial compliance letters from O&G and Newman for a temporary but that the building inspector is looking for a final substantial compliance letter for the addition.   Jack Healy, Chair states that the media center is not being used and that a parent complained about this.  Jack Healy, Chair wants to know when the PVC stamp from the contractor will be submitted.  George Graikoski states that the contractor stated that if the building inspector wants the PVC stamp it would be an additional $600 for each school.   A. Brooks Fischer states that it is Newman’s position that it should not be an additional charge because it should be part of the contract documents.  He feels that it should be done and the cost argued at a later date in order to gets the students in the space quickly.   

 

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved that the Construction Manager advise the contractor that he has twenty-four hours from the date of the notice to stamp the drawings, after which time we’ll have another PE review them and stamp them and back bill them for the charges.  So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

William J. Buckley, Jr. states that this motion will back bill the contractor for the total cost to get the stamp and not just for the $600 to get it stamped. 

 

 

Jack Healy, Chair asks about the vestibules.   George Graikoski states that it is turned over.  Jack Healy, Chair asks if there is a heat problem there.  Peg Perusse states that there is no heat in the bathrooms and it’s an outside wall and they are worried about the pipes freezing.  Discussion ensued as to how this got this far without the discussion of heat in the bathrooms.  George Graikoski states that it will be an additional cost to heat the bathrooms.   Jeff Zullo asks George Graikoski to get an estimate on the cost to put heat in the bathrooms.

 

 

A William J. Buckley, Jr. state that he was not finished with the agenda item Budget (O&G) and asks Jack Healy, Chair if the Committee can go back to that agenda item.  Jack Healy, Chair approves.

 

 

 

Budget (O&G) continued from above

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved to remove $3,347 from the line item for the High School of Testing and Inspection 15-000160 and reduce that number to where it was in report number 13 of the $103,160.   So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved for the Intermediate School to take $2,271 from line item Architects Basic Services 25-00120 out and reduce the Architects Basic Services by the amount of the contract to $617,100.00 and ask Peg Perusse to provide the Committee with an explanation of what the $2,271 was for.  So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

Motion:  William J. Buckley, Jr., moved for the Intermediate School under Moving Expenses 25-000240 to remove the $2,158 to bring the report back to zero in funds available and ask Peg Perusse to provide the Committee with an explanation of what the $2,158 was for.  to So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

William J. Buckley, Jr. states that the bottom line is that these motions will bring all the items back to zero in George Graikoski’s report for next meeting and then the amounts can be addressed in motions at the next meeting if needed.

 

 

 

Back to agenda item Schedule Update (O&G)

Jack Healy, Chair goes back to the Intermediate School.   He wants to know if there is a price to paint the ceilings.  George Graikoski states that it is going to be done not to exceed $14,000.00 and the work is going to be done over the holidays.   He states that this expense is not in the report this evening.   Discussion ensued that the expenditure was approved at the last meeting and should have been put on the report for this evening.  William J. Buckley, Jr. reads the motion from the minutes of the November 1st meeting.  A very lengthy discussion ensued.

 

Lynn Chapman asks the Chair if she can go back to the vestibule issue because she is irritated over it.  Jack Healy, Chair agrees to go back to the discussion.  Lynn Chapman wants to know how the Building Committee can pay an architect and a construction manager close to two million dollars each and the bathroom got built without heat.  She wants to know from them at what point does someone say that there is no heat and there are outside plumbing walls and this issue needs to be addressed.  She is upset that to say it’s going to be an extra cost to put heat in the bathrooms now is ridiculous.  She states that enough is enough because through out this project there have been errors and no one has been accountable for these errors and when you design a bathroom and build a bathroom you have to do it right.  She states that she’s not agreeing to pay for it and that it has to be fixed without cost to the building committee.  William J. Buckley, Jr. supports her statements.  Lynn Chapman wants the architect and the construction manager to come back to the Committee next month with a resolution to the bathrooms because she states it’s not coming out of contingency.   

 

Jack Healy, Chair wants to know when the punch listing will start.  A. Brooks Fischer states that after the incomplete list is done then it will be punch listed.   The punch list areas are discussed.

 

Jack Healy, Chair tells George Graikoski to send him an email by 5 PM next Friday, December 14th telling him that the incomplete list is completed and the punch listing has started.

 

Jeff Zullo inquires about the O&G Contract and its expiration date.  William J. Buckley, Jr. states that the contract is for forty-two months and it was signed on June 16, 2004 and expires on December 16, 2007.   George Graikoski states that he believes there will not be any overage charges from O&G or any other contractors.  George Graikoski reports that all the construction is completed in the Intermediate School and that they are in the final punch listing stage.   Jeff Zullo asks for O&G to give the Committee a clarification that they are going to finalize the project within the financial agreement of the contract.   George Graikoski will send an email to the Committee members stating that they will not be charging extra.

 

William J. Buckley, Jr. feels that the Committee needs a value for the work to be completed and still feels that the Committee should have gotten a construction litigation lawyer on board.  Jack Healy, Chair tells George Graikoski that he wants an email by next Friday letting him know that the incomplete list is complete with the values of that work.

 

Jack Healy, Chair wants to know about the High School.  He states that there are issues there.  He states that they still do not have approval for the Science Rooms.  Jack Healy, Chair states that he talked to Richard Munday and Jose Hernandez and there will be a meeting next week to discuss this issue with John Worthington, Tom O’Hare and a member of the Planning and Zoning Commission.  Jeff Zullo states that he thought that had been resolved months ago.  Jack Healy, Chair states that it has not been resolved.   Jack Healy, Chair is angry because the students are not getting the proper education because these rooms are not getting done.  He voices his frustration that this is still an issue and wants the meeting next week to resolve this issue once and for all.  A. Brooks Fischer states that all the ceilings and other things have been accepted but that they still need the dampers to be installed to achieve the one hour rating. He states that in regard to the one hour rating spaces throughout the rest of the school, they have an issue regarding how it was constructed and they are in the process of figuring out the best way to solve that issue.  He believes it is a conflict as to what it required.  Further discussion ensued.  Jack Healy, Chair states that he is tired of getting calls and emails on this issue.  It needs to be resolved once and for all and he wants the parties to resolve it at next weeks meeting and not to leave the meeting until it is resolved.  Jack Healy, Chair again tells George Graikoski that he wants an email by 5 PM next Friday with all the answers to the problems and he wants the dampers put in.  He also wants a date certain for when the rooms will be finished and ready to be used by the students.  Mac Bramley wants to know if money has been allocated for the damper solution.  George Graikoski responds, “No.”  Mac Bramley asks George Graikoski if he has an estimate of what it will cost.  George Graikoski responds, “No.”  He further states that until today, he didn’t know that the dampers were an issue.  Jeff Zullo tells George Graikoski that if the contractor will not give you an estimate then he needs to get an estimate from another contractor so this work can get done quickly.  A. Brooks Fischer states that the meeting next week has nothing to do with the dampers.  Further discussion ensued.

 

 

Motion:  Jeff Zullo moved to appropriate up to $10,000.00 to rectify the issues of fire dampers in the High School Science Classrooms as required at the discretion of the Construction Manager and fund it from line item 190, FFE and allocate the $10,000.00 from the $273,260 that is available and transfer it to the HVAC line item number 10-152100.  So moved.

Seconded:  Bob Blazek

Discussion:  none.

Vote:

Absent: Gary Waugh and Leo Paul - Ex-Officio

Objection:  None

All ayes

Motion passed.

 

 

Jack Healy, Chair wants to know about the punch list for the High School.   A. Brooks Fischer states that certain areas are done but much less than the Intermediate School.  Jack Healy, Chair asks George Graikoski to get him an email by 5 PM next Friday updating the High School areas.

 

The siding is discussed in detail.  A. Brooks Fischer states that once Allied gets to the areas where the siding meets other parts of the construction that they will come out and look at it so that any issues can be resolved right away.  Jack Healy, Chair tells George Graikoski that he wants an email on the siding issue as well by next Friday.

 

Wayne Shuhi tells George Graikoski that the sun coming in the window in the gym could be a safety issue and wants to know if they can do something to cover the window.  A. Brooks Fischer tells them to be careful not to do something that can negate the warranty. Further discussion ensued.

 

Jeff Zullo asks that the emails that are going to Jack Healy, Chair should be emailed to all the members of the Committee.

 

 

Intermediate School Media Center & Cafeteria Completion (O&G)

Discussed in Schedule Update (O&G).

 

 

Wall Panel Update (O&G and HSN)

Stacie Kavle, Vice Chair feels that this agenda item should be discussed in Executive Session because all she has done so far on this was to meet with the Town Attorney.

 

 

LHS Ceiling Replacement, Noise Attenuation and Noise Levels (HSN)

Jack Healy, Chair wants to know about the ceiling tiles.  George Graikoski states that the ceiling tiles are being delivered tomorrow for the rest of the classrooms and he is working on the price because there was a material price increase and he is waiting for the prices.   George Graikoski states that in the 100th wing, the kitchen has not been turned over.

 

Jack Healy, Jr. asks Peg Perusse about the issue of money for the pizza.  She states that it is $12,000.00 that the School Board did not pay and that the bill is still outstanding.  William J. Buckley, Jr. wants to know how the cost for the pizza has anything to do with the building.   Jack Healy, Chair states that at some point it will have to be discussed and decided on whether the Committee will pay for it or not.   William J. Buckley, Jr. states that he will not vote to pay for pizza over twenty years and that it doesn’t make sense to him.  Peg Perusse states that the food service, the Education Connection, prepares the meals off site and that the cost is not for paying for the pizza but paying for containers because the board of health requires that food is kept at a certain temperature and since they don’t have any refrigeration, the food is brought from off site locations and they had to buy all the containers.  Jack Healy, Chair wanted the Committee to be aware of the bill for the future.  Further discussion ensued of the program, the requirements and the cost to students.  She states that they could have said that they were not providing lunch and the students would have to bring their own but that they do provide lunch because they participate in the program.  

 

 

Credit Update (O&G)

Jeff Zullo asks George Graikoski about the status of the credit update report.  George Graikoski states that the report is 99% done and that he will have it for the next meeting.  

 

 

Issues List Review (HSN)

A. Brooks Fischer has an updated list entitled Issues List 10/4/07 and hands out what copies he has to the members of the Committee.  He states that the reds are all the closed items.  The report is discussed with the members of the Committee.

 

 

Parking Lot Update (Jeff Zullo & Bill Buckley)

Tony Crowe reports that they have now been told by the Police, the Selectman, Inland Wetland and Planning Zoning that they can’t have cars parking on Constitution Way after December 30, 2007.  He states that this is a permanent decision.  He states that the police recommended that the driveway go back to the way it was last year so that cars can park by the baseball field.  He states that what it does is make the road a one way again.  A lengthy discussion of this issue ensued.  A. Brooks Fischer states that all the studies and all the approvals have already been gotten and to change it now would require all the approvals all over again.  Various ideas are discussed.  Jack Healy, Chair does not believe that this is a building committee issue and that it is a school and school board issue.  The only issue that would be for the building committee is the issue of the reversal of the driveway.  William J. Buckley, Jr. states that at some point the architect has to give a letter for zoning compliance and state that the site plan was built substantially consistent with the approved plans and if you fool around with the site plans before the project is done, you are opening this up to a lot of issues that would prevent the architect from signing off on the site plan.  He feels it should be left the way it is suppose to be and get the project done and then the driveway change can be dealt with. Tony Crowe states that he has a real problem come January 1st with where the students will park.  Bob Blazek would like to know if the staging area or the old drive way could be worked on by the town to get it ready for cars for the students to park there for the time being.  He wants to know if this would affect anything for the architect.  A. Brooks Fischer does not know and will have to find out.  He thinks that this would be a separate project apart from the existing project and that you would still have to get the necessary approvals.  Mac Bramley states that he believes that this problem is one for the school and the school board to handle since he believes it is not the right of every student to be able to drive to school and that the school should regulate who drives to school since the busses are running only at twenty percent capacity now.  Tony Crowe does not agree with Mac Bramley.  Mac Bramley states that parking should be limited and on should be based on need.  Further discussion of solutions is discussed. Jack Healy, Chair does not feel that the Building Committee should get involved in this issue because there are still so many other issues pending.  William J. Buckley, Jr. thinks they may be able to cut down some trees and put some gravel down in the new parking lot area.  Tony Crowe wants to know where the money for that will come from to do that now. George Graikoski stated that it would still be a construction area and it would be covered under the contractors insurance and that that would be an issue for the contractor and would be a problem to do that now. Further discussion ensued. 

 

 

Alternative Options List Review (Lynn Chapman)

None discussed.

 

 

Maintenance Building

None discussed.