Submitted by Centralia School District
The Centralia School District Board of Directors unanimously approved the Superintendent’s recommendation to hire Forma Construction as the general contractor and construction manager (GC/CM) for the District’s upcoming school construction projects. The vote was cast during their regular monthly meeting on September 20th. Forma will oversee construction for both the remodeling of Centralia High School and the construction of two brand-new elementary schools replacing the Fords Prairie and Jefferson Lincoln schools.
The District has elected a somewhat non-conventional model in hiring a general contractor/construction manager at this point in the process. “In a traditional model, owners would have a fully designed project before hiring a contractor,” said Superintendent Mark Davalos. “In the GC/CM model, we’re hiring our contractor during the design phase. Forma will work with our project managers and architects to help solve any potential design problems that may otherwise not be realized until construction. This has the potential to increase efficiency, generate significant cost savings, and will help lead us to on time delivery of completed buildings.”
The District has combined the two elementary school projects into one, and has classified the CHS remodel as a separate project. A three part application process was implemented for both projects consisting of an application submission and review, an interview with the construction leadership team, and then an invitation to submit bids. “Forma stood out in all three phases,” Davalos said. “Having one GC/CM partner for all of our building projects was our ideal outcome and we are very pleased with this new partnership.”
Forma was represented at the meeting by Mr. Drew Phillips who expressed delight at having his firm selected. “What I’m most impressed with about these projects is that you’ve put together a team that is really top-class,” Phillips said, adding that Forma is excited to get to work in Centralia.
Davalos reminded the board that:
“we’re not building schools based on what we wanted last year. We’re building schools to be the best they can be for the next 20-30 years. Forward-thinking schools that ensure we’re doing the best job we can with our community’s investment.”
Planning and design work for the new buildings has been underway since voters in Centralia approved an ambitious $74 million bond in February. The District’s construction leadership team holds a full-day of meetings every Monday. “We’re meeting with the elementary school team in the morning, and the high school team in the afternoon,” Davalos said.
Representatives from the team also recently visited many schools in Western Washington that were constructed by the team of project managers, architects, and contractors now in
place.
The District hopes to break ground on all three projects by the spring of 2018, with occupancy expected in the fall of 2019.
