HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-10-28-PBC-min.pdf TOWN OF LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS
PERMANENT BUILDING COMMITTEE
Minutes of Tuesday October 28 1997 Meetina in Room 105 , Town Office
Building, as approved November 25 , 1997
The meeting was called to order at 7 38 p m by Chairman Bruckman with
other committee members Himmel , Johnson, Kelley and Touart , as well as
Director of School Building Operation John Moynihan and project manager
Fay DeAvignon present Also attending were architect Dorthea Hayes of
HMFH, School Committee Chairman Barrie Peitz , Anne Frymer and Dawn
McKenna
Diamond plans, more finalized in consultation with Diamond staff , were
displayed by Hayes Among the few changes not previously made was the
removal of the canopy across the bus drop-off area to better expose the
new main entrance, further enhanced by addition of an identifying struc-
ture Switching the designated bus and parent drop-off areas was
proposed by Principal Hennessey, for security and supervision and it was
received with reservation by the PBC Hennessey still expressed concern
about congestion in hallways
The current main entrance will now be relocated to the doorway within
the courtyard and the doors adjacent to the auditorium will be open only
for special functions The committee was ambivalent about Principal
Hennessey's proposal , but gave authority to HMFH to prepare a sketch
which would show an alternate scheme
Other changes in the Diamond plans include equalizing locker room
facilities for boys and girls and adding extra rest rooms at a hall
corner to lessen need for long trips for users Asked whether the new
addition would be placed upon a foundation with crawl space or a slab on
grade (answer the latter) , and whether there might be tennis courts
(once proposed) built on the Diamond site so that students at that
school could to have equal opportunities with Clarke students
Schedule presently calls for high school construction document prepara-
tion begin December first , with May bid documents and actual construc-
tion to begin about August, following bid award July 1 The middle
schools bid documents would be ready September 1 , with contract award
November 1 Harrington School would be two months later Moynihan
asked that this schedule be speeded up, so that more construction work
can be done during summer 1998, as all secondary schools must be ready
by September 2000 This could not happen unless construction can be
accomplished in 20 to 24 months Later in the meeting DeAvignon was
asked by the committee to talk with John Miller as soon as possible
about speeding the schedule
Invoice from HMFH dated September 30 , 1997 was APPROVED after review of
information detailing furniture and equipment proposed for different
types of classrooms in each of the four phase I schools Committee
requested that DeAvignon give initial input on all invoices prior to
committee approval and sign-off by Moynihan On plans and proposed
other changes , she would be the go-between to obtain school staff input ,
within limits and parameters set by the committee beforehand
Proposed public displays to be placed in Cambridge Savings Bank windows
and at Cary Library were shown on foam-core boards A notebook with
detailed information would be at the library's reference desk This
could be signed out for use inside the library Recommended that the
PBC Minutes of 10/28/97 - Page 2
notebook contain a comment sheet asking for the commentator's name and
telephone number and that DeAvignon pick up the sheet every few days
A committee advocating for the project asked if they could add current
school enrollment figures to the display Upon advice of Moynihan, the
answer was , "No, " since that data would be inappropriate This request
sparked a lively debate later in the meeting about use of DeAvignon's
time to do any work for organizations outside of town government
Emphasized that the sharing of information is a role of the committee
and that DeAvignon should note locations of available information or
refer to Bruckman and/or member Touart
Reauest for extra funding for filina with the Conservation Commission
Since this work is not part of the basic services in the HMFH contract,
extra funding will be needed, Hayes pointed out Committee VOTED to
authorize negotiation for the cost of this work before the landscape
architects file with the Conservation Commission Included would be
delineation of wetlands , Request for Determination and possibly a
Wetlands Act hearing for the four sites involved with Phase I
Another request for extra work/funding came from a contractor who
proposed monitoring air quality with special equipment during construc-
tion Although the committee saw some value in this , they noted that
the most important issue was that installed air handling equipment work
properly from day to day after project completion Architect Hayes was
asked to bring specifics on the wetlands and air quality issues to the
next PBC meeting
Question about hiah school capacity and peak enrollment projections was
posed to the Chairman at one of the information meetings , and he asked
for explanation of an apparent discrepancy Architect Hayes assured
that although projected peak enrollment at time of space study was 1845 ,
the high school is actually planned for about 28 percent above that , and
thus the school can be described as a school for 2000 students
Phasina plan first draft sketches for Diamond were displayed and
explained by DeAvignon She envisioned construction of the new wing to
be in a suggested first phase of work in the school and renovation in
the second Among the problems yet to be fully confronted are asbestos
abatement work and need to keep rest rooms , gym, library, cafeteria and
auditorium open when school is in session and during most construction
She also noted possible problems in providing science rooms for school
programs Committee commented that phasing should be a joint effort
between DeAvignon and HMFH and their consultants to provide the best
proposals given time constraints and the building users ' needs Noted
that DeAvignon should request and have mechanical , electric and plumbing
plans from TMP engineers for full planning of phasing
Cary Library meetings and negotiations were reported briefly by Johnson,
who has been attending various meetings Concern expressed that with
all the money being spent on the project , more careful attention should
be given to the requirements of the Open Meeting Law Secretary was
asked to call Julie Triessl on this
Meeting adjourned at 10 20 p m
Respectfully submitted, r�� Secretary