Indian Creek schools will once again attempt to hire a construction manager for a multi-million dollar transportation and maintenance facility just south of its Trafalgar campus.
An agreement with Schererville-based contractor CORE Construction fell through in November, the month construction workers were expected to break ground on the 19,500-square-foot facility. The school board held a bid consideration meeting Thursday, continuing its efforts toward breaking ground, this time in the spring.
School officials will interview Patterson Horth Inc., of Indianapolis, and Hagerman Construction Corporation, of Fort Wayne, after school board members agreed the two companies had the experience necessary to successfully oversee the completion of the $4-million project. Both schools have experience overseeing building projects for schools, which was key in the decision-making process, Superintendent Tim Edsell said.
“We’re obviously looking at the fees and whether they can self-perform any of the work or not,” Edsell said. “We look at the quality of their proposal, their references and (kindergarten through 12th grade) experience.”
If a construction manager can self-perform, it means they can work on some aspects of the project, such as masonry and metalwork, on their own, meaning less parts of the project have to be contracted out to other construction companies, he said.
The current transportation and maintenance facility is located behind Indian Creek Middle School, and has created traffic jams during pick-up and drop-off times. The new location will ease traffic and increase space for bus storage. The building will include offices for the district’s transportation personnel, sandwiched by four bus bays on one side and a garage for bus maintenance and repair on the other, Edsell said in October.
The plans have not changed since then, and the new facility will have space for 40 to 45 buses, which will fit all the district’s vehicles, including spare buses, he said.
Indian Creek schools will work with Lancer + Beebe, an architectural firm out of Indianapolis, on design of the building.
School officials will make sure the construction manager has a construction superintendent on site everyday during the project, which is vital to a project’s success, said Terry Lancer, a partner in Lancer + Beebe.
“We look to see if they have similar past experience; have they worked with other school corporations, and have they performed as a construction manager in the past? How they are going to staff the project; will they staff it appropriately? We check references on them,” Lancer said.
Next steps include interviewing candidates from the two companies, after which the school board will select a construction manager, he said.
Once a construction manager is selected, the work will be contracted out and construction will begin. Indian Creek schools hopes to have construction complete before the end of the year, Edsell said.
