CORRECTED MINUTES

LITCHFIELD SCHOOL BUILDING COMMITTEE

LITCHFIELD INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL LIBRARY

AUGUST 4, 2005

 

 

A meeting of the Litchfield School Building Committee was held on Thursday, August 4, 2005, at 7:00 p.m. in the Center School Library.

 

Present were: Jack Healy, Mac Bramley, Jeff Zullo, Bill Buckley, Bob Blazek, Gary Waugh, Kent Gilyard,  Lynn Chapman and Stacie Kavle.

 

Also Present: Leo Paul, First Selectman, BOE Members Diane Knox, Frank Simone, Don Falcetti and Wayne Shuhi; Peg Perusse, Business Manager, Debbie Lavoie, Assistant to Business Manager, Tim Callahan of HSN, Peter Herbst, Public and the Press.  

 

Meeting was called to order at 7:03 PM by Jack Healy.

 

Approval of Minutes

Approval of minutes was tabled until a quorum of members from the July 7TH meeting is present.

 

Public Participation

Dean Birdsall, Teacher at LHS spoke about his research of potential photo voltaic cells on the renovated LHS roof.   Connecticut Clean Energy Funds pays for half of the cost and he also has interested sources for grant money for the remaining cost.   He sees this as a teaching opportunity in terms of an alternative energy source and it will also generate electricity and save the school money.  

 

Communication

Bob Blazek – Bill Dranginis of the Board of Selectmen would like to know when bids are going out.

Betsy Glassman and Winnie Harrison took photos of asbestos clean up and reported what they perceived as problems to the State.   Kevin Creed would appreciate comments

Jeff Zullo – These are construction sites; are these buildings not closed to all public access?

Peg Perusse – There are signs posted.

Bill Buckley – The photos look like pictures of a school that is in need of $22M of improvements.   The asbestos containment looks to be in order.

Jack Healy –Mr. Stapleton [with the CT Health Department] examined the school.  For him not to find anything wrong is good.  He is very thorough.  He mentioned that the Health Department should talk to the people who went in to the building.

Jack Healy – Inland/Wetlands and Planning and Zoning have not passed it yet.   A special meeting was unproductive.   They put approval off until next meeting.

Bob Blazek – My understanding is that they are tidying up details and it will come up for vote at the next meeting.

 

Architect and Construction Manager Update

Peter Herbst – I suggest that the BC Members attend next Wednesday’s meeting.   I think we will get approval from Wetlands Commission.   Richard Caulkins [of Northwest Consulting who is working for Inland/Wetlands and P&Z] met with Ruth Mulcahy for five hours.  When he came back to the special meeting he said that all their concerns were met.   At the P & Z hearing last month things started off on a negative issue about the drainage basins, but Leo spoke up and told them that the basins are almost cleaned out.

Mac Bramley – Jack [Healy] should write a letter to the First Selectman and P & Z Chair requesting a close of public hearing and a vote as soon as possible.   Time is of the essence.

Peter Herbst – Frame the letter to thank them for all their work.  Ask if all their questions have been answered and whether it would be appropriate to close the public hearing and to have a special meeting to vote on this.

Jeff Zullo – Delaying it is a cost issue to the Town.

Peter Herbst – As many as you as possible should be there on the 15TH of August.

Bill Buckley – When you draft the letter, Peter should look at it.   I am not opposed to suing them.

Jeff Zullo – In the letter, if they are going to close the public hearing, request a special meeting as soon as possible.

Peter Herbst – Commissions are not always influenced by letters as they are by people showing up and showing their concern.

Jeff Zullo – My point of the letter is documentary evidence if we have to go the route Bill [Buckley] talked about.

(Kelli:  Didn’t we decide not to write a letter and only request the meeting be closed verbally at the P&Z meeting?)

 

Tim Callahan handed out a new schedule.   Assuming P & Z approval on August 15 (or before August 30) bidding would be in late September.  If approval goes out another month this schedule goes out another month.

Jack Healy – We need to encourage local boards to approve in August.

Bill Buckley – Once you get OSF approval, how long do you need to get bid packages together and out on the street?

Tim Callahan – We’re anticipating OSF approval the first week of September.   We’ll be ready to bid before the 23RD.   We’ll go the day after approval.

Bill Buckley – Once you get SFU approval, do we get it out to bid?

Jeff Zullo – OSF approval is contingent upon STC approval.

Bill Buckley – You have to get State published wage notices.  That takes about ten days.  I am going to guess it is not the next day.

Gary Waugh – Is a wage rate set for a certain period of time?

Bill Buckley – Not sure.  How long are we going to keep it on the street?

Peg Perusse - Bruce [Walpole] says five (5) weeks.

Bill Buckley – I thought we were going to have this information for this meeting.

Jeff Zullo – What had pushed back the schedule in the last month?

Bill Buckley – How likely is it if we get STC approval on the 22ND of September that we get SFU approval on the 23RD?

Tim Callahan – They will do that.

Bill Buckley – We don’t have completed SFU reviews?

Tim Callahan – No we don’t.

Bill Buckley – Final comment review on the 10TH for LIS and the 16TH for LHS; is that reasonable?

Tim Callahan – Yes

Bill Buckley – Have you bid a project recently?

Tim Callahan – Yes.

Bill Buckley – Did you have bidders on every line?

Tim Callahan – Yes

Bill Buckley – More than one bidder for each?

Tim Callahan – Yes.  It was for a small church

Bill Buckley – Not a School.  I bid a school recently; we had no bids for site work and just one for some jobs.   It may be better to bid in October.

Tim Callahan – Bidding and negotiation phase takes about two months.

Jeff Zullo – My concern is it might be a December 15, 2005 ground breaking.  It throws the schedule off.

Jack Healy – We didn’t plan on Wetland and P & Z sitting working on an application for four to five months.

 

Mac Bramley – Fire detection system – it is already budgeted?

Tim Callahan – There will be an impact, but not significant.

Mac Bramley – Sprinkling the stage; is that in the budget?

Tim Callahan – Yes.

 

Jack Healy – What we don’t see in this handout is the Inland/Wetland requirements.  We are looking at up to $500K for requirements.  We will probably go to Leo [Paul] to talk about it.

Bill Buckley – I think the Capital Committee will look at the requirements that are outside of the scope of this project.

 

Bill Buckley – We asked for a schedule tonight.  I think Tim [Callahan] should get together with O & G to give us one.

 

Jack Healy – I’d like an email of a definite time frame up to the day we stick a shovel in the ground.   Or as definite as we can get.

 

 

 

Approval of Minutes

Motion was made by Mac Bramley to approve the minutes of the July 7, 2005 meeting, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.  All votes were in the affirmative.  Jeff Zullo abstained.

 

Motion was made by Jeff Zullo that the Building Committee encourage the investigation of the concept of Dean Birdsall to explore the possibility of having voltaic panels at LHS, seconded by Stacie Kavle.

Motion Carried.  All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions

 

 

Finance Subcommittee Update

 

Mac Bramley –Bills to pay:

 

1.      Diversified Technologies [DTC] – Two bills for the oversight of asbestos removal at LHS, invoice 18290 for $3,057.00 and invoice 18341 for $25,750.90 totaling $28,807.90.

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to DTC in the amount of $28,807.90, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions.

 

2.      Herbert S. Newman - We will only fund the final 10% upon full approval of final drawings and bids received, but we will pay for incidentals.   Invoice 15420 for $1,054.97 for incidentals plus the amount withheld on the HSN bill approval of July 7, 2005 to Wilbur Smith Associates.

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to HSN and Wilbur Smith, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions.

 

3.      INCOR – Four (4) bills for asbestos removal.

LHS Application 2 $111,000.00

LHS Application 3 $31,500.00

LIS Application 2 $25,437.50

LIS Application 3 $24,000.00

Totaling $191,937.50

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to INCOR in the amount of $191,937.50, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions.

 

4.      Penelope C. Sharp – For the study of Flora and Fauna in the amount of $4,410.00

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to Penelope C. Sharp in the amount of $4,410.00, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions.

 

5.      Peter Herbst – The hours were incorrectly posted and we received an adjustment back for $100.00.   We have a bill in the amount of $2,730.00 for P & Z and Wetlands meetings – split up LHS $1,801.80 and LIS $928.20.

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to Peter Herbst in the amount of $2,730.00, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions.

 

6.      Kelli L. Green – For recording of the minutes for June & July in the amount of $144.00

 

Motion made by Mac Bramley to authorize payment to Kelli L. Green in the amount of $144.00, seconded by Jeff Zullo.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions

 

Technology Update - None

 

 

Motion to adjourn was made by Gary Waugh at 8:35 PM, seconded by Lynn Chapman.

Motion Carried.   All votes were in the affirmative.  There were no abstentions

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

Kelli L. Green, Recorder