Region 15’s Board of Education voted to form a Building Committee that will oversee the district’s multi-year elementary school construction projects at Gainfield and Pomperaug elementary schools at an online meeting Thursday, July 9.
The projects are expected to modernize both elementary schools following approval of the district’s proposed $224 million plan.
Approved members include six Board of Education members, two community members, and two ex-officio members.
The membership of the Building Committee will include:
- Marion Manzo – BOE Chair
- Heather Rodgers – BOE Member and Treasurer
- John Jenusaitis – BOE Member
- Heather Dwyer – BOE Member
- Shannon Cavallo – BOE Member
- Steven Suriani – BOE Member
- Jason Andrews – Southbury resident, member of the Feasibility Study Committee
- Christine Carver – Middlebury resident, former Superintendent of Bethel Public Schools
- Joshua Smith – Region 15 Superintendent
- Joe Martino – Region 15 Director of Finance and Operations
Board members also addressed a potential conflict of interest involving Cavallo, who serves as chief financial officer at a Meriden-based architecture and engineering firm.
The overlap, Superintendent Smith said, centers on the selection of an architect and construction firm. He clarified that, under board policy, Cavallo will recuse herself from interviews for the selection of an architect and construction manager, and abstain from voting on the architect selection. She will also not be present for executive sessions where proposals are reviewed.
Once the committee moves into what Manzo described as the “mechanics” of its work, Cavallo will be able to participate fully. Manzo also added that the membership of the committee is not fixed, and that members could be added as the project progresses.
With requests for proposals going out in June, firms are given 30 days to respond. Once submissions are in, board members will review proposals that meet the district’s criteria using a rating system similar to one used by the Feasibility Study Committee.
The board is aiming to narrow the field to three or four finalists in early August.
Some board members raised concerns about the committee’s composition, with Dwyer and Suriani questioning whether the committee has enough members with engineering and construction backgrounds relative to the number of regular board members on it.
“I feel really good about Christine Carver and Jason Andrews,” said Dwyer. “I just want to express a little bit of hesitation about having so many board members on the Building Committee and not being balanced with engineering and building experience.”
Smith noted that other regional districts have had large numbers of board members on similar committees without quorum problems.
“We’re following the footsteps of other regional districts,” said Smith, adding that he will confirm the procedure with the district’s legal counsel.
The current plan calls for new construction on existing district-owned sites, utilizing space not within the current buildings’ footprint.
It could take 18 to 24 months until the simultaneous projects are complete. If started in 2028, the projects could potentially be ready by fall 2030.
By Evan Triantafilidis
The Southbury Record 