This meeting is a hybrid meeting both in person and remote. Uh I am the chair and will be remote today. Uh looking at a roll call from voting members. I see myself Marty Carissa.
Yeah. Hi. Hi Josh. I'm here. Lynn here. Nicole here. Uh Kate, I see you're there as well. And
welcome. Um I don't think we got an official vote on Kate as a member, but do I have to win because she's the school committee representative? I don't think the building committee does a vote on that. Um,
it is it is by the one it's by the design of the board who who the representatives are and she's been replaced by the school committee. So, um, welcome Kate and just say here and we're good here. Here calling to the meeting or the first thing on the meeting order would be
public comments. Are there any public comments? Yes. Yeah, we do have some public comments in the room, Armen. Um, and so since Arman's remote, you can come on up to the table to the microphone and
introduce yourselves and your address. Hi, my name is Terry Teresa De Julio and I live at 8 Woodside Drive. Builder Julio, same address, 8 Woodside Drive.
So, we were we were at a um a forum that Marty was hosting on the I'm going to stop you there. Is this comments in regards to the incident that you have reported or is this in regards
to the building project itself? I have three minutes to speak. No, I do not. If it if it is not about the building project and it is about the incident, I'm ruling it out of order and not heard. Okay. So, I guess I my voice is not
heard, right? That That's almost That's unacceptable. That's unacceptable. No, it's not. It's unacceptable. unacceptable. We We Yes, we we made the our comments to the school committee, but not to the school. wanted to make
the comments to the middle school building committee. No, you are out of order. Next time you have a forum, you need to make sure it's under control, please. In regards to public transactions, we have power in regards to this building
only. Are there any other public comments? Seeing none, moving to approval of minutes on May 14th, 2025. Is there a motion? Motion to approve the minutes from May 14th, 2025.
Motion is moved. A is moved. Is there a second? Second. Second. And did you recognize me uh at the outset of the meeting? Oh, Dave. Yeah. Oh, sorry Dave. I didn't see you there. No, I did not. And I know you're there now.
Thank you. Okay. Um in the room. Uh so go around. Uh go up to what I see. Nicole, yes. Lynn,
yes. Yes. Josh, yes. Dave, yes. Armen, yes. Marty, yes. Carissa, yes.
Is there anybody else uh out there? Gate, did I say your name? Yes. Okay. All right. Motion passes. Going to new business. Uh moving on to uh schedule update. Call yours.
Yep. Thanks, Armen. Uh so I just want to uh remind folks of the two um votes we have coming up for uh funding the project. We have September 9th there's a special town meeting and then September 30th uh will be a ballot vote for the project. So those are two important
dates coming up. Uh just to remind folks to get out there and and show their vote. That's all I have for schedule for tonight. All your CMR recommendations of the committee or Dave or Marty, you want to speak to that?
Sure. Uh I think our thought was to have Adam as our project manager explain the process and then uh uh Dave and I can weigh in on the recommendation of the team that interviewed the construction managers. So,
perfect. All right. Right. So, I'm just going to kind of go back a little bit how this process started. So, um the the school building committee developed a um a CM selection committee was uh was formed that was um some school building
committee members uh members from the design team and then members from Collier, the OPM uh and at that time we sent off uh to get approval from the inspector general's office to go ACM at risk. and we did receive approval from the inspector general's office uh to have
this project um use a construction manager. Uh from there an RFQ was issued for a construction manager and there was eight firms that submitted qualifications. Uh those qualifications were reviewed and then narrowed down or shortlisted down to four different um
construction managers. That was Bond, Shamit, Conigley and Fontaine. And from there we issued an RFP. We requested a non-pric proposal and a price proposal and then we scheduled interviews. Um we evaluated each of those proposals um
together and then we held interviews yesterday. So today um we'll have uh the committee will have a um a recommendation or the subcommittee will have a recommendation for the full committee uh to consider and then if that motion passes then we would issue a
letter of intent to the construction manager uh to begin their services and then from there we'll negotiate the contracts and I'll work with Chad on our end um and Lynn to make sure that we have the contract signed and and get through negotiations. All right, I'll I'll pick it up uh from
here. Um so uh we had a a great team assembled to interview the uh firms that Adam had identified. Uh Dave McGrain and I representing the building committee. Uh Lynn Simmons, our
town manager and member of the building committee uh was also present. and JWA and Collier's um provided their support and input as well. So, as as Adam mentioned, we had uh an opportunity to
review the uh price proposals uh the non-pric proposals and then participate in the interviews. And so, um it was a a thorough process. I appreciate um how Kier's um guided us through that process and um
uh really made sure that we were uh within the requirements of within the legal requirements to make sure that uh it it was a thorough and fair process. So with regard to the the price proposals we received, all of the um the
proposed fees were under the estimates the schematic design estimates that we had made. And so in that sense I'd say they were all uh all the fee proposals were all deemed to be favorable. Um in terms of the so it it the proposals
themselves were excellent as well. I think we all felt we had four firms that were fully capable and qualified and prepared to work collaboratively with us on the on the on the uh project. Um the
the interviews were were really helpful in terms of giving us an opportunity to meet with the team. Each of the firms brought uh full project management teams. Uh each of the firms demonstrated that they had collaborative teams in
place. Uh each of the firms demonstrated um kind of an understanding of our project. Ultimately, the team uh is bringing a recommendation to hire Fontaine Brothers as our
construction management partner. Um I think what separated uh Fontaine from the other excellent firms that had submitted proposals was their um commitment to to K12 uh
education. it all the firms had K12 experience. Uh with Fontaine, it seemed to be their primary focus. Um I think Fontaine also demonstrated that they had really studied the community. They were
really uh able to talk us through what they saw as the community impacts uh and how we could mitigate uh the concerns that have been brought forward from from residents with regard to the u construction process and and the
traffic. Um the other thing I think that Marty can I ask Marty just pardon me just asking a question along the way. I think I don't know if you said it earlier, but there seemed to be significant butter support for Fontaine as well as the preferred vendor. Is that correct?
Yeah, we had received a letter signed by I'm going to say about a dozen or so um neighbors who were supportive of of hiring Fontaine for this project. And I think that that factored into our considerations as well. I think, you
know, really, as we've said many times, one of the the big focal points of our work with the design team and the design of the campus has been to be sort of responsive to the concerns of the
neighborhood and to to sure that be sure that we're mitigating impacts. Uh, and so I think that was really an area that um stood out for us with Fontaine. The other thing that stood out for me
was uh Fontaine's access to uh local subcontractors and suppliers and and that seemed to be uh important to the team that did the interviews as well. Um
and so really that emphasis on local concerns um being shephered by a local firm. I think that really was something that was compelling to us uh through the review of their proposals and through the
interview process. Um if if our chair is okay with it, I I' I'd like to share with the committee and by extension the community um a video that was included in the uh
proposal that Fontaine had shared with us and I think it will um maybe give this committee and anyone who watches kind of an understanding of of how um considerate Fontaine Brothers would want to be of the, you know, the the
construction impacts and the impacts to the neighborhood. So, if you're okay with that, Armen, I' I'd like to show that video. I I'm totally okay with it. I viewed the video. I am amazed at how uh how much they captured the essence of the project and uh how well it translates into
people being able to understand what we should be expecting the next uh the next steps along the way. Um so, yeah, go by all means, go ahead and play it. second here. And uh
let me know if you seeing a a screen with a a rendering of the building right now. Yes, we see the YouTube. Yep. And so let me know if if the audio is not coming through just wave your hand or let me
know. Our team is so excited to submit this proposal. While we've been through this process many times before, assembling this proposal has been far more personal. Several members of our team are Long Meadow residents. They live here, have raised their families here,
and their kids have all gone through the Long Meadow Public Schools. We've taken their local knowledge and their passion for this project to create an approach that includes very specific ideas. Ideas on how to get the vote passed, how to avoid disruption to the neighbors on
Ducksbury and Woodside, and how to control traffic and parking impacts on the residential side streets between Bliss and Williams. Ultimately, these ideas form the foundation of a plan to deliver this project while treating the
job site and the community with respect. Our logistics plan is rooted in our local knowledge of the eb and flow of traffic in the area throughout the day. the fact that large numbers of kids walk and bike to school in good weather and an understanding of how the bell schedules at the high school and
Blueberry Hill as well as the proximity of the shops impact afternoon traffic and congestion in town. Construction will start during the summer of 2026. Our focus will be on the installation of the geothermal wells and
installing safety measures to separate the construction zone from the school before the return of students in September. The site lends itself very nicely to a clean separation between construction activities and school operations. Our
offices, layown area, and parking will all stay along the William Street side of the site. There will be no impacts to the existing parking or traffic flow of the day-to-day activities of the school. Construction of the new school fits
nicely between the summers of 2026 and 2028. We have built a number of new middle schools of similar size and feel very comfortable with your schedule and the duration of construction. We're also really excited about the design and the inclusion of both structural steel and
mass timber. We have great relationships with both Canadian and European timber suppliers and bring tons of experience installing this work. Heat. Heat. The summer of 2028 will be an exciting and busy time. Our team will be working
with the school department to relocate teachers from both Williams and Glenn Brook, as well as receiving new furniture and equipment. While we're helping everyone get settled into the new school, we'll also be abating and demolishing the existing school. By the time students arrive in September, the
old building will be gone. All the parking and new driveways will be installed, and we will have retreated behind a new construction fence surrounding the athletic field, which we will complete over the course of the fall. Our team can't wait to share these ideas and
more when we meet with you on the 22nd. And while this project is quite literally in our backyard, we would never ask you to pick us just because we're local. We're asking you to pick us because we're the best fit for your project. We're public school builders.
This is what we do. Nice. Thanks, Marty. You're welcome. So, I'll stop there and um I'd invite Dave um who obviously has a ton of experience in this field to to share anything that I might have missed.
Hey, thanks, Marty. Uh and I'm going to apologize real quick here. I've got uh five uh Long Meadow School District students climbing in my car right now. So, it'll be a little bit of a background noise. Um so, just to add to what Marty was saying, uh for me,
Fontaine, so first of all, yes, all four of the candidates were were highly qualified. Um to reiterate where Fontaine really separated themselves was the the local intel and uh how they brought that local intel to the scope of proposal the details of the proposal.
All four firms brought some level of intel but uh and the inherent level of intel that Fontaine possesses is uh is hard to uh hard to control hard and that was clear in their proposal. Um the second part that uh really swayed my
view of all this was uh Fontaine's uh recent relevant and a breadth of experience specifically with CERS and JWA on K through2 projects and um that experience none of the other uh
candidates could match. So th those were the two highlights that I I focused on when uh raising my my uh opinion to bring uh Fontaine on. Great. There any questions from any of the board members?
I have a question. Um, being new, this may have been covered previously, but I'm wondering if the proposal stipulates any cost contingencies or, uh, material costs
that would relate to tariffs. So, so I can answer that. So, um, the proposals themselves don't, you know, they talked about tariffs and so working with the the Mass School Building Authority, we have a spreadsheet that we've shown in the past. It's called the 311 and that's where it's a total
project budget. Within that total project budget, we are carrying uh a million dollars for potential tariffs. Um, so uh that's there as a contingency for tariffs. Um, but working with a CM, especially, you know, somebody who's
going to come on early, is really going to be able to tell us, you know, what items um, we may have to pre- purchase to stay ahead of the tariffs or lead times. Uh, so that's another benefit of having a CM on board. I think uh, yeah, it's fair to say.
I would just say as part of the the overall project, Kate, we have had multiple conversations about tariffs. Um even and I don't know if Dory I see you're out there as well. Um you know we had asked both of the estimators who had estimated for us against each other.
Both were estimating like an extra 1% at the time for the for the the tariffs. It wasn't anticipated to greatly affect the project at that time. Of course that's subject to change. But Lori, you want to give any color on that? I think as Adam said, the value of having the CM on
early is that they're actually given more time to vet. And each of the teams address tariffs in their interview in various ways. One of the things that stood out was uh that Fontaine was already looking at some of the more unique procurement elements and pursuing
different options for those elements. And I think you you see that kind of across the board. Everybody was assessing what impact tariffs might have on different parts of construction. But since only parts of the construction would be impacted and there's plenty of lead time before we get to that procurement, a lot of that can get
mitigated by either early purchases, um, the discussion about again concerns about electrical equipment and the need to purchase that early. All of those ways were helping the project offset those impacts. Um, so I think it was pretty consistent in their consideration
for the issues. Thank you. Thank you. Any other questions from the board? Uh yeah, this is Josh. I got a question. Um between the different proposals, uh I I think it would be pretty straightforward you're building a
building next to another building. Were there any significant differences in uh how the roll out would happen or uh timing wise or is it was it all fairly consistent? Timing wise, I'd say they were
consistent. I'd say um the firms might have had different views on uh where to establish the the access road for the trades or they might have different views on uh
you know location of construction trailers that kind of thing. But uh even even with that, I think what I heard from JWA and KERS is that um the the proposals for for phasing
and access to the site for construction are are just that proposals. and that we'll have ample time to sit down with Fontaine Brothers to to talk about how we'd like the site to be managed during that construction period and how we'd
like to maintain access and safety and controls during that construction period. So I yeah, I would totally agree. you know, as Marty said that these proposals are just, you know, these firms looking at school committee meetings and kind of watching videos versus sitting down and
having conversations with, you know, Nicole's from the schools and all this other stuff and and and meeting with us to to make sure that, you know, everyone's on the same page. So, that logistics plan that they showed, I imagine will change a little bit. Um, it's just that it just shows that they
gave a lot of thought into coming into this of of what they see up front without actually having conversations with the committee. Okay, great. Yeah, thank you. I think that uh my question kind of came about I was talking to Julie Morgan today who is
on a flight so she couldn't be on the call. Um, but we were discussing because our our younger or our younger kids will be in school the entire middle school the entire time of construction and we were talking about how access and safety
and if they'll have any outdoor area and uh so that's something I would be curious to talk about with the CMR. So knowing that it's proposals I think helps my decision. So thank you. I think we can Josh if I sorry go ahead Dory. I was just going to add that um
one of the values of this process is that and I I want to publicly thank all of the um contenders for bringing their ideas to the table because there were a variety of ideas brought by each team on a variety of subjects that are useful for us to talk about and consider uh
with Fontaine. So they all already added something to it and I think we should be grateful for the effort they put into it. Um but on the site prep work, you know, there was uh uh one team that really emphasized doing those off-site improvements early in the project
timeline um in order to sort of address some potential safety improvements that that could bring. So that was I thought a useful idea. There were um ideas about how to mitigate impact on uh abutters with uh specific types of fencing and that was taken well by the committee. So
I think there will be things we'll carry from that process over and we'll improve the process uh going forward with uh with the selected CM. And if I if I could add to what Dory was saying um in addition to options or
ideas that were presented during this interview process, there were also uh dozens of examples of how these kinds of challenges were mitigated on real projects in the past. Um and maybe we don't see the same challenge yet on this project, but there's obviously a
library, a history to draw on to uh address any and all challenges that we might find. Uh I mean there they were showing cases of of zero clearance between occupied school and active building compared to you know we have several dozens of feet uh difference. So
I just want to add that that plenty of ideas and examples that were coming from from past experiences as well across the four Any other questions or comments? If not, is there a motion? Armen, um Nicole, sorry.
Um happy to uh make a motion and also just to to echo what Dory said and thank um Bond and Sham and Coniguli and Fontaine for all coming out. Um it was it was great reading to look through all the different proposals. Um, I move that the middle school building committee vote to award Fontaine Brothers as the
construction managers as recommended by the construction manager selection committee and that a letter of intent be sent to begin work. There is a motion. Is there a second? I'll second that. There's a second from Lynn. Is there any
further discussion on the topic? Okay, seeing none, I'm going to call for a vote. Roll call. Nicole, yes. Kate, yes. Lynn, yes. Josh, yes. Carissa, yes.
Dave, yes. Marty, yes. Armen, yes. And Chris is absent. Motion passes. Next on new business is next step. So Chad, I guess next step
kind of falls on you. Yes. Um I'll work with um Adam on the contract uh so we can get that out sometime by the end of next week hopefully. Yeah. What I what I'll do first is I'll draft up a letter of intent um and share
that with Chad and then if if that seems acceptable I'll send it off to Fontaine and um work with them and Chad and Lynn on the contract. Sounds that sounds good. Hey, I think it needs to be noted though from a cost perspective. All of the proposals came in under what we had budgeted. Correct.
Correct. Yeah. And all the proposals were were pretty close um as far as costwise as well. So all four came in, you know, within a percent of each other, if not a you know, half a percent. They were all very competitive.
It's good to know. I mean the good thing is along the project we've had most of the costs have not exceeded what we were expecting. If anything they've come in just at what we're talking about or under. Um so I'm really happy on the process so far working with Collers and
and uh JW out there to to keep us in line and hope you know this is just things to come with Fontaine. Is there any other input? Seeing none, I'd call for a motion to adjurnn.
So moved. Is there a second? Second. Quickly. Nicole, yes. Kate, yes. Lynn, yes. Josh, yes. Carissa, yes. Dave,
yes. Marty, yes. Armen, yes. We are adjourned. Thank you everybody. Goodbye. Thank you. Thank you everybody.