BCAT News

The newly formed High School Building Committee, which is tasked with conducting a feasibility study on whether to repair or rebuild the Burlington High School, approved a Request for Services in its inaugural meeting Thursday night. 

The RFS is in search of an Owners’ Project Manager, a firm that will work for the district and lead the school development process. The OPM will guide Burlington through the feasibility study, which involves analyzing the current conditions of the high school building and site, projecting future enrollment needs, and presenting options for renovating or rebuilding the school. The district has procured $1.5 million for the feasibility study, and expects  the development of a new high school to cost as much as $300 million. 

Once submissions have been received, a selection committee within the High School Building Committee will come up with a short list of qualified contractors, and the district will bring an OPM on board by November, according to Superintendent of Schools Dr. Eric Conti. If Burlington was working with the Massachusetts School Building Authority, that state agency would also need to approve the request, but the district can move more quickly because it is going it alone. 

The selection committee will include School Committee Members Jeremy Brooks, Christine Monaco, Katherine Bond, Melissa Massardo and Martha Simon; High School Principal Mark Sullivan; Support Services Coordinator Joe Attubato; Director of Facilities and Technology Bob Cunha; Ways and Means Committee members Doug Davidson and Chris Campbell; and Town Meeting Member Mimi Bix-Hylan. Davidson and Campbell are also both Town Meeting Members. 

“I’m hoping this will be an attractive job for firms,” said Conti. “I hope you’ll be busy, because I hope we’ll get a lot of different proposals.”