Vigo School Board approves Garmong, Schmidt for high school HVAC projects

Jul. 24—The Vigo County School Board took some major steps Monday to address high school HVAC and plumbing issues with the hiring of two firms, Garmong Construction and Schmidt Associates.

Garmong was hired to provide "construction manager as a constructor" (CMc) services for the project, while Schmidt was hired as the architect/engineer.

Schmidt previously did a study to determine the facilities' greatest HVAC needs.

Garmong was one of four firms to respond to a request for proposals, and three firms were interviewed, said John Newport, VCSC chief operating officer.

Now, Garmong and Schmidt will work together on the design phase.

Under a tentative timeline, bidding would occur sometimes between December and February 2024, with construction starting about February or March, Newport said.

Work will take place at the three sites, North, South and West Vigo high/middle school, and projects will have to factor in when school is in session.

Newport said the CMc model, approved by the state Legislature in 2014, can speed up the process somewhat over the traditional design/bid/build model.

Under the construction manager as a constructor model, the owner chooses an architect to design (Schmidt), but instead of waiting until the drawings are completed (like a traditional design-bid-build), the district also selects a construction manager as constructor (CMc) to provide constructability reviews, cost estimates, scheduling and planning during the design phase.

It allows for better communication between the CMc and the architect because they plan and design the project together, Newport has said.

The team will then publicly bid individual trade packages to subcontractors. The process provides a guaranteed maximum price, a guaranteed schedule, and transfers the risk of timeline and cost from the school corporation to the CMc, Newport has stated.

And time is of the essence, since the deadline to use ESSER funds is December 2024 and the district is aware of the potential for supply chain and labor shortage issues.

Newport and Superintendent Chris Himsel have been in contact with state and federal officials about the potential for extension of that federal deadline.

According to Himsel, the district will push to get the project done by the deadline, "but there are some factors we may not be able to control, which is why we are doing proactive work to protect ourselves," he told the school board.

The HVAC/plumbing project has been estimated at about $24 million, and the district has $18 million in federal ESSER funds to address HVAC and related electrical issues and it will use $6 million in general obligation bond funds to address plumbing needs.

Schmidt would be paid 6.5% of the total construction cost, Newport said.

Garmong costs include:

A preconstruction services fixed fee of $25,000; a construction services fixed fee of about $40,000 per month related to project staffing; and a fee percentage, based on the total construction cost, of 2.35% (negotiated down from 2.9%), Newport said.

In other matters:

—Karen Goeller will be retiring as deputy superintendent effective July 31. For many years, she has led the corporation's curriculum and instruction team; she has worked for the district for more than 36 years.

Board members and administrators praised Goeller at the conclusion of the board meeting.

Himsel, who previously interacted with Goeller about 20 years ago through a state organization, described her as "a special person, who is very knowledgeable, who cares deeply about kids and cares deeply about those who serve kids."

He added, "You are going to have very big shoes to fill in terms of your impact on our community, and we just want to say thank you."

Board member Jackie Lower described Goeller as "the utlimate professional in any situation — crisis, calm, not so calm. She is always gracious and a nurturer of all those around her."

Lower added, "I salute her for all of her efforts and her years of dedication and love for the Vigo County School Corp., and she will be missed."

In a written statement provided before the meeting, Goeller said, "I am extremely grateful for the rewarding career that I have had with the VCSC.

"I have worked with School Board members, two superintendents, a district administrative team, a district curriculum team, principals, teachers, and other staff members who are simply outstanding. Their talents and energy levels are amazing, and I will miss the team meetings and grant-writing sessions where new ideas and innovative programming came together. I will especially miss the hallway coffee chats where daily school challenges resulted in helpful solutions.

"There are too many people to name in the VCSC, in higher education, and in the community who have impacted my career and improved my ability to serve the district over the last 36 years. I will always be grateful for my time in the VCSC in working alongside such a dedicated team of professionals."

Goeller said she is looking forward to adjunct teaching at Indiana State University "to help grow strong future teachers and principals." She is also also eager to spend more time with her four (and soon to be five) grandchildren.

—Also under personnel, Christopher Tanner will serve as the West Vigo Middle School principal, starting Thursday.

Ryan Easton had been principal of both West Vigo High School and Middle School since the 2020-21 school year.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or at sue.loughlin@tribstar.com Follow Sue on Twitter @TribStarSue