Approved October 23, 2024
MPS BUILDING COMMITTEE MEETING
Oliphant Administration Building
Michael S. Pinto Conference Room
26 Oliphant Lane, Middletown, RI 02842
September 25, 2024 5:00pm
Members in Attendance:
| Present | Voting Member | Name | Title |
| X | Yes | Edward Brady | Chair, Community Member |
| X | Yes | William Nash | Vice Chair, Community Member |
| X | Yes | William Niemeyer | Superintendent of Schools |
| X | Yes | Theresa Spengler | School Committee Chair |
| X | Yes | Tami Holden | School Committee Vice Chair |
| N | Yes | Vacant | Director of Facilities Management, Transportation and Safety |
| N | Yes | Thomas P. Welch, III | Town Council Vice President |
| X | Yes | Peter Connerton | Town Council Member |
| X | Yes | Donna Sweet | Middletown High School Principal |
| N | Yes | Michelle Fonseca | Asst Superintendent for Teaching and Learning |
| R | Yes | Shawn Brown | Town Administrator, Local Budget Official |
| X | Yes | Don Morin | Secretary, Community Member |
| N | Yes | Marc Thayer | Community Member |
| N | Alternate | Gregory Huet | Alternate Member of School Committee |
| P | Alternate | William O’Connell | Alternate Member of School Committee |
| N | Alternate | Christopher Logan | Alternate Town Council Member |
| N | Alternate | Jerry Haas | Gaudet Middle School Principal |
| X* | Alternate | Marc Tanguay | Town Finance Director, Alternate Local Budget Official |
X = Present/Voting; R=Represented; P=Present/Non-voting; N=Not Present
* Marc Tanguay arrived at 5:04pm
· The meeting was called to order at 5:02 pm by Chair Ed Brady. Eight (8) of thirteen (13) voting members were present or represented by an alternate. Town Finance Director Marc Tanguay arrived at 5:04pm, increasing the quorum to nine (9).
· Also present: Justin Bernard, OPM, Colliers Project Leaders
· Present via Zoom: Matt LaRue, Tina Stanislaski, Connor Heinzman, Alexandra Christiana, HMFH Architects; Ed Cifune, Emma Osborne, DBVW Architects; Colin McCarthy, OPM, Colliers Project Leaders; and Steve D’Ambrosia, Traverse Landscape Architects.
· MOTION: Bill Nash moved to accept the meeting minutes from September 11, 2024 and Don Morin seconded.
· DISCUSSION: None.
· VOTE: The motion passed unanimously (8-0).
· Matt LaRue introduced Steve D’Ambrosia, landscape architect from Traverse Landscape Architects who walked the Committee through the latest site and landscape design.
· There are four parking lots on site. The main lot entering from Turner Road will remain, and another smaller lot will be located to the east of the school to serve as the bus drop-off at the high school entrance. On the west (Aquidneck Avenue) side of the building, there is a larger parking lot that will use consist of the existing pavement currently located to the west of the current Gaudet School. A smaller lot will be positioned in front of the Middle School entrance adjacent to the parent drop-off.
· Curb cuts that currently exist on both the Turner Road and Aquidneck Avenue entrances will remain as is. Circulation around the site has not changed since the last update.
· Some items have moved to the Add Alternate list, including the connector road between the Turner and Aquidneck Avenue lots, the former Drive-In Entrance, the softball field, the multipurpose field, two outdoor classrooms and some bike racks.
· Steve next shared some detail about the courtyards on each side of the building. Both courtyards contain gathering spaces that can be used for outdoor learning. Vice Chair Bill Nash asked if the bollards could be movable for emergency vehicles if needed. Steve explained that the bollards are intended to be fixed to prevent vehicles into the courtyards to ensure the safety of students who may be gathered there, but they could investigate making some movable if that’s what the Town wants.
· The sidewalks will be broom finished concrete while the courtyards will be exposed aggregate. During some recent discussions with the civil engineers, the rain gardens may need to change to swales that will be fed to the stormwater system, as the ground water table may prevent the ability to create true rain gardens on site. Taller plantings are proposed along the north end of the high school courtyard, adjacent to the high gymnasium wall.
· The existing lower lacrosse field to the west will be protected during construction. The area where the multipurpose field and softball fields are planned will be graded out to support adding either or both fields at any time in the future if the budget doesn’t allow for them as part of this project.
· Multiple areas have been identified for storing snow in the winter. The plan is to protect all existing trees on the north and south side of the campus, with an additional variety of native trees planted throughout the site to provide shade.
· Don Morin asked if the stormwater management hydrology assessment report was ever shared with the Committee. Chair Brady suggested that Don connect with Justin Bernard to obtain the report.
· ACTION: Share the Stormwater Management Hydrology Assessment report with the Building Committee. – Justin Bernard
· Father Thomas O’Neill addressed the Building Committee, stating that he is on the Pedestrian and Bicycle Committee and the Open Space and Fields Committee. He asked if there was a path for pedestrians and bicycles from Turner Road to Aquidneck Avenue. Sidewalks exist for this, but there is no dedicated bike path planned for the site.
· Glenna Johnson, another member of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Committee, addressed the Committee and suggested that the Building Committee leverage the experts on the Pedestrian and Bicycle Committee to provide input on the sidewalk planned for the site. She also suggested that the Building Committee keep the town’s Green Streets initiative in mind for potential grant money to support work on the site to support pedestrian and bicycle access. Superintendent Billy Niemeyer offered to provide a connection between the consultants and the community members for follow up questions.
· ACTION: Connect the community members from the Pedestrian and Bicycle Committee and Open Space and Fields Committee with the consultants. – Superintendent Niemeyer
· Karen Barbera, a member of the Tree Commission and a working landscape designer informed the Building Committee that the Tree Commission would be reviewing the plans and will provide input to the Committee in the future. She expressed concerns about holding classes in the gathering spaces at the front of both the middle and high school sides of the school, as they could be noisy. She also asked about how the site will be maintained. Vice Chair Bill Nash stated that a maintenance plan will be included as part of the design package. Kareen informed the Committee that RI DEM offers grants for outdoor classrooms and suggests that the Town explore this. She said she would provide information to the Building Committee about these grant opportunities.
3.2 Construction Document (CD) Development Update
· Matt LaRue reminded the Committee that the Construction Document phase will continue from now through March, 2025. Matt shared a list of the items that need to be completed during this phase and will continue to report on these items as work progresses. 60% CD completion to support the next round of Cost Estimating is targeted for December, 2024, with the 60% CD submission to RIDE taking place in January, 2025.
· Early packages will be issued for long lead items like mechanical equipment, steel, foundations, etc. ahead of the 100% CD completion date to allow the construction manager to get these long lead items out to bid earlier than other items.
3.3 Planning Board Master Plan Application Update
· The consultants met with the Planning Board’s Technical Review Committee on September 25th to review the Master Plan Application. A site walk-through is planned for September 30th. The Planning Board presentation is scheduled for October 9th, but due to the number of agenda items planned for that date, a special meeting may need to be set up for the Planning Board review.
· Exterior design drawings included in the Planning Board package were shared, and Matt explained that more developed exterior drawings will be shared after input is received from the Planning Board. A section cut and grade on the north side of the building was shown to highlight the elevation change and the need for an 8-10 foot retaining wall with a fence and vegetation atop.
· Six copies of display boards with project images have been created and provided to the High School for use at their recent open house. These boards can be shared with other schools and the Town as needed.
· The Planning Board Technical Review Committee meeting was held on September 25th.
· A programming group meeting is scheduled for September 26th to review some CHIPS graphics and to set up user group meetings.
· The soils characterization report has been received. Soil samples were taken from three sites, and two of the samples contained petroleum levels higher than allowed. The consultants believe that these are isolated findings and once the soils are blended, the piles will contain petroleum levels below the acceptable limits for removal from the site. A meeting with the geotechnical consultant is scheduled for September 27th to review the results in greater detail. The findings align with the cost estimator assumptions.
· The DD Ride Stage III Submission is still targeted for September 27th.
· The Planning Board site visit is scheduled for September 30th.
· A meeting with the Historical Commission is tentatively planned for October 2nd.
· A meeting with the Roads and Utilities Commission is tentatively planned for October 3rd.
· The Planning Board presentation is scheduled for October 9th, but it is subject to change.
· User group meetings will be scheduled in October.
· The elementary school mechanical site visit is scheduled for October 10th.
· The entire update from HMFH and Traverse Landscape Architects can be viewed here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kqlKiu0U8z0tB5oqU4elCO8NHItKKLWo/view?usp=sharing.
4.1 Public Safety Meeting Recap
· Justin Bernard informed the Committee that the consultants met with the Fire Chief and Middle School Safety Resource Officer on September 18th to review site access for the new building. The Fire Chief and SRO requested access from east to west for emergency use. It needs to be a minimum of twenty feet wide but does not need to be paved.
· No concerns were raised with the potential elimination of the former drive-In egress road.
· There are no ADA maximum floor area requirements driving the need for a second elevator in the new school.
· The location of the fire alarm equipment exterior key box is being reviewed and confirmed by the Fire Chief and fire marshal.
· The budget has not changed, with anticipated costs around $177,333,800, excluding contingencies.
· There are no major changes to the schedule since the last update two weeks prior. One minor adjustment was for the RIDE DD submission to be moved from September 13th to September 27th. CIVIC is still working on the variance review and hopes to have it by the 27th for signature approval by the Superintendent.
· RIDE Stage III DD re-submission is targeted for September 27th.
· Support for the Planning Board presentation in October will continue.
· The update from Colliers can be viewed here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KQ9oH0W2-1yQ4nBIhomNU5h3xlU7XD7f/view?usp=sharing.
5.1 Upcoming Meeting Schedule
· Chair Ed Brady suggested that the Committee consider meeting once monthly as the consultants move through the 60% Construction Document phase, as not many decisions will be needed. On the off weeks when the Committee doesn’t meet, Colliers will send an update on the project to the Committee. A few members will be looking at the Construction Documents offline as they are produced.
· The following meeting dates were proposed: October 23rd, November 20th, and December 18th at 5pm. Colliers will send updates out between these meetings.
· ACTION: Send updates out to the Building Committee between the October, November and December meetings, like what Colliers has done for the Town Council updates in the past. – Colliers
5.2 Coordination Meetings Update
· Chair Ed Brady mentioned that he is setting up a meeting with the Middletown Historical Society in October to gather items to incorporate in the new school design.
5.3 Two Week Look Ahead
· Chair Ed Brady explained that he had nothing else to add that wasn’t already covered.
Adjournment
· MOTION: Don Morin moved that the Building Committee adjourn at 6:57pm and Theresa Spengler seconded. The motion passed unanimously (9-0).
Future Meeting Schedule – The next meeting will be on October 23, 2024 at 5:00p.m. at the Oliphant Administration Building.
Respectfully Submitted,
Don Morin