School board OKs giving BCD the right to bid on TNHS auditorium project

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio

Sunday, March 3, 2016, 11:45 p.m. — A special-called meeting of the Nelson County Board of Education meeting regarding construction bids for the new auditorium at Thomas Nelson High School turned into a debate about the board reversing a policy it established last year.

Board members Larry Pate and Diane Breeding listen during a discussion to consider allowing BCD, the district’s construction manager, to bid on the Phase 3 auditorium project at Thomas Nelson High School.

At its meeting Thursday, Tim Hockensmith, the district’s chief operating officer, told the board the district did not receive bids for three bid packages for parts of the auditorium project: concrete and carpentry; masonry; and acoustical and drywall.

The parts of the project have been sent out for bids once again, Hockensmith said, but he expressed concern about the possibility there will be no bids submitted again.

The bidding process takes about a month, and each time a part of the project has to be rebid, it means another month delay in the start of construction, he said.

“We’re not 100 percent confident we’re going to get bids on those three packages,” Hockensmith told the board.

He asked the board to consider an exception to the policy it established last year that prevents BCD — as construction manager — from bidding on district projects.

Hockensmith contractors are saying they have all the work they need at this time. The auditorium project is small in comparison to other construction projects under way, and competition for contractors has increased.

“It’s a case of supply and demand,” BCD President Michael Salsman told the board. “Unfortunately its the first time we’ve found ourselves in this position since 1992.”

MICHAEL SALSMAN

Allowing BCD to submit bids on the three parts of the project will insure the district gets at least one bid on each part and avoid further delays in construction, Hockensmith said.

Board Member Damon Jackey said the board’s priority should be making sure the auditorium is built in time for the start of school in 2017.

Hockensmith said if multiple bids are received, the board would have the choice of not giving the bid to BCD.

Another reason for the board to act is that delaying the bids also delays the bond sale the board will conduct to pay for both the Early Learning Center and Thomas Nelson projects. The plan was to have one bond sale for both in order to save on fees.

The first steps of construction at the ELC have already begun, he said, noting that it is a $3 million project.

“At some time we’re going to need the funds in the bank to make those payments,” he said.

“I don’t know why we’re hung up on this,” Jackey told the board. “It doesn’t mean we’re saying ‘BCD is getting a bid,’ it means that we’re saying ‘we need to have a safety net to keep this moving forward in a timely manner.’ ”

But board chairman Diane Berry said allowing the construction manager to bid on the project was a conflict of interest.

“In my world of contracting, you don’t do it. You don’t manage it and work it too,” she said. “That’s just the way the contracting world works.”

Board member Damon Jackey said allowing BCD to bid will keep the TNHS auditorium project on track.

Berry said she wanted to wait until BCD was the only option before allowing them a chance to bid.

BCD President Michael Salsman warned that continuing to rebid the job may signal to contractors that there’s a problem with the project.

The original bids are good for 60 days, and those could expire if re-bidding is necessary again.

The board will still have the option of rejecting any or all of the bids received on April 12, Hockensmith said.

Board member Diane Breeding said she had a hard time believing that there were no contractors who would bid on all parts of the project.

BCD has sent the bid package to dozens of contractors soliciting bids, Hockensmith said.

Board member Larry Pate recommended allowing BCD to bid, adding that the board could still choose to not award a bid to BCD when bids are opened.

Breeding said giving BCD the chance to bid means the board is going back on its word that it wouldn’t allow the construction manager to bid.

The board voted 3-2 to allow BCD to bid on the project, with board members David Norman and Diane Breeding casting “no” votes.

In other business, the board approved a fixed-price contract with Petroleum Traders Corp. Under the contract, the district will pay $1.8294 per gallon for gas, and $1.8352 for diesel fuel.

Hockensmith said the district buys about 10,000 gallons of gasoline and about 150,000 gallons of diesel fuel each year. The fixed-price contract allows the district to better plan for its student transportation expenses, he said.

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