Renovation of an educational facility in Parkersburg, West Virginia. Completed plans call for the renovation of a 33,610-square-foot educational facility.

https://www.newsandsentinel.com/news/business/2025/01/wood-county-boe-discusses-stadium-renovation-bids/ Wood County BOE discusses stadium renovation bids Assistant Superintendent of Operations Kaleb Lawrence and Pickering Associates President and CEO Ryan Taylor talk to the Wood County Board of Education Tuesday night about the bids for the Parkersburg High School stadium renovation project. (Photo by Douglass Huxley) PARKERSBURG — The Wood County Board of Education met Tuesday night to hear the bids for the Parkersburg High School stadium renovation project and will now have to decide to accept one of those bids or return to the design process. Assistant Superintendent of Operations Kaleb Lawrence told the board the district received three bids for the project. “The highest bid that we received was (from) SPQ Construction, out of Saint Albans, that was $7.2 million,” Lawrence said. “The next bid was Grae-Con (Construction), they do a lot of work for us, (at) $6.29 million. And the apparent low bidder was UCCI (United Construction Company Inc.) at $5.4 million.” Lawrence said the bond languages stated $2 million would be set aside for the renovations. I don’t think any of us were expecting the number to be that high,” Lawrence said. “So, we were a little bit shocked when we got those numbers. Pickering Associates President and CEO Ryan Taylor said they did their own estimates for the project and they came in around $3.5 million. He said most of those figures came from quotes he received from vendors. He said what was underestimated was the cost for demolition. “And so there’s a significant difference (in) the effort to take that stadium apart and put it back together,” he said. Taylor said all of the bidders put in a lot of time into their bids and that needs respected. “These numbers are on the street,” he said. “We need to make sure we protect that. We want to do everything we possibly can to make sure that number one, we get local. Number two, we get a stadium that’s fixed.” Board President Justin Raber asked if they could bid out different design options to get a more advantageous bid. Taylor said they could but that they need to respect the vendors. “We need to respect time and effort. It takes a lot of money to put a bid together,” Taylor said. He said he believes the current bids are good for 30-60 days depending on what the general conditions say in the contract. He said if the board decides not to accept any of the current bids they need to act quickly so they can release the bid bonds. “When they come and submit a bid, they’re ready to do the job, and there’s lots of front end documents that are required in these bids,” Taylor said. “So if you guys don’t want to move forward with it, we need to be prompt and get with them so we can start the next steps.” Raber said the board will decide those next steps at its Jan. 28 meeting. The board also heard a boundary attendance lines update for Hamilton and Jackson Middle schools and Martin Elementary for the 2025-2026 School Year by Assistant Superintendent of Academics and Leadership Justin Hartshorn. “The goal is to ensure a smooth transition for all students,” Hartshorn said. “We’ve been working hard with our administrators to develop plans that bring people together and build excitement about the future.” He said the most significant change is the closure of Fairplains Elementary, with all of its students being reassigned to the underutilized Martin Elementary. He said at the middle school level, Van Devender Middle School will be shutting down, with its students dispersed between Hamilton and Jackson Middle schools. Hartshorn said the proposed boundary lines will assign the area between the Little Kanawha River and Emerson Avenue to Hamilton Middle, while the region north of Emerson Avenue will go to Jackson Middle. “The area that is currently assigned to Van Devender Middle School between the Little Kanawha River and Emerson Avenue, which eventually turns into Memorial Bridge Road, will be assigned to Hamilton Middle School starting the 2025-26 school year,” Hartshorn said. He said to help families navigate the changes, the district is launching a new online school locator tool that can be scanned from a QR code. He said the district is also providing flexibility for open enrollment. “Students already attending a school outside their residential attendance zone who are in good standing do not need to reapply annually,” he said. Hartshorn said with these boundary adjustments, the district aims to create a more efficient and effective educational system for all students. “Our goal is to communicate that… and make it fair to them,” he said. The board will vote to approve the proposed lines at a later meeting. Superintendent Christie Willis talked to the board about how the district utilizes “equivalency time,” adding 30 minutes to school days from the beginning of the year which can be used to forgive up to five days of missed classes due to inclement weather. She said with that equivalency time already in place, students will not have to make up the last five school days missed; however, any additional closures beyond the five days will need to be made up. She said the last possible day for students would be June 11, and the last possible day for teachers would be June 13. The board also approved the appointment of Bree Deuley-Marlow as Neale Elementary Principal effective July 1, 2025. Deuley-Marlow will be stepping in for retiring principal Linda Brunicardi. The next regular meeting of the Wood County Board of Education is scheduled for Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. at the board office located at 13th and Plum streets. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed online. Douglass Huxley can be reached at dhuxley@newsandsentinel.com *** Items approved during Tuesday’s meeting: * Martin Elementary Secure Entrance Pay App 2 in the amount of $35,998.11. * Jackson Middle School Secure Entrance Pay App 3 in the amount of $44,432.64. * Jackson Middle School Secure Entrance Change Order 2 at no cost. * Hamilton Middle School Secure Entrance Pay App 2 in the amount of $72,933.57. * Hamilton Middle School Secure Entrance Change Order 2 at no cost. There is no cost to extend substantial completion date to March 10, 2025. * PSHS Football Turf Project Pay App 1 in the amount of $366,210.90. * WHS Football Turf Project Pay App 1 in the amount of $303,901.20. * WHS Restroom & Concession Contract with Phoenix Associates. * Sara Hess as interim Director of Purchasing as an additional duty assignment with step up pay from December 3, 2024, through January 14, 2025. * Sara Hess for the position of Director of Purchasing effective January 10, 2025. * Amendment to the Professional Services Agreement 13 New Vienna Elementary Geotech in the amount of $10,395. * Amendment to the Professional Services Agreement 15 PHS Stadium in the amount of $2,436.69 for concrete core drilling of the existing concrete slab. * Right of Entry Agreement for the potential New Vienna School property on the current West Virginia University at Parkersburg property upon and across Campus View Drive, Vienna. * WV Birth to Three Transition Procedures Agreement from Part C to Part B under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA). * Approved Bree Deuley-Marlow for Neale Elementary Principal effective July 1, 2025. __________________________________________________________________________ WCS-PHS Stadium & Building 413 Renovations The project entails demolition of the existing East (visitor's) Parkersburg High School cast-in-place (CIP) concrete stadium tread, risers and CIP concrete column/beam substructure. The demolished CIP concrete deck & substructure shall be replaced with a steel substructure and a new precast concrete tread & riser deck. The existing exterior three (3) sided brick/CMU wall is to remain in place throughout all construction activities. The project will also include but is not limited to the following: new fire suppression system under the East (visitor's) Stadium, ADA ramp access, handrail/fall protection, existing seat plank restoration and renovations to the adjacent Building 413 restroom facility. Question Deadline 12/30/2024 at 4:00 PM ET , All questions shall be directed to Shelby Wagner of Pickering Associates at swagner@pickeringusa.com. Clarifications requested by a Bidder must be submitted in writing to Shelby Wagner . Project Estimated Schedule: Project awarded on or about January 20, 2025 and to be completed on or before April 17, 2026. 1 The Contractor agrees that from the compensation otherwise paid, the Owner may retain a sum of $500 a day, for each day thereafter, Sundays and holidays included, that the work remains uncompleted, which sum is agreed upon as the proper measure of liquidated damages which the Owner will sustain per diem by the failure of the Contractor to complete the Work at the stipulated time, and the sum is not to be construed in any sense a penalty. Bidders will be required to provide Bid security in the form of a Bid Bond of a sum no less than 5 percent of the Bid Amount. The successful Bidder will be required to provided Performance and Payment Bonds. Each Bidder will be required to provide an executed Drug-Free Workplace Conformance Affidavit per W Code 21-1D-5, attesting that their company maintains a valid written drug-free workplace policy and that such policy is in compliance with WW Code Each Bidder will be required to provide an executed Jobs Act Affidavit per WWW Code 12-10, certifying that the Contractor will comply with the requirements by hiring from the local labor market. 1. The successful Bidder and all Subcontractors will be required to provide Contractor Certification of Worker Compliance per WW Code 21 1B and 15-2-2, certifying that the Contractor has verified the criminal records of all its employees who will work on this project and that none of such employees have been required to register as a sex offender. All Bidders will be required to submit certifications that they will comply with all requirements of the Resolution for Construction Contracts adopted by the Wood County Board of Education. The Contractor will pay for and pickup all permits. L. Submit your offer on the Bid Form provided. M. Your offer will be required to be submitted under a condition of irrevocability for a period of 30 days after submission. Bidders and sub-bidder(s) as Contractor and Subcontractor(s) are required to utilize local labor" pursuant to Chapter 21 Article 11C, the " West Virginia Jobs Act. Pursuant to Chapter 21-Article 11 of the "West Viriginia Contractor Licensing Act", all Contractors doing business in West Virginia must be licensed to perform work in the State. The Contractor's W License Number must be affixed to all construction bids and fully executed and binding construction contracts and agreements. The Owner reserves the right to accept or reject any or all offers to make selections from the bids that are solely in its own best interest.