After changes, Belmonte Middle School repair project now under budget

SAUGUS – Jim Dowd, project manager for Skanska Builders, said the Belmonte Middle School repair project is back within budget with 60 percent of the construction drawings completed.The total estimate for construction is now at $15.70 million, which is about $5,500 under budget.?It?s a great accomplishment from where we were,” Dowd told the Belmonte Building Committee Tuesday.In February, the project came in about $3 million over budget, but the committee voted on a series of cuts to bring the price back down which included leaving the main staircase intact, reducing painting to just the classrooms and hallways and replacing lighting in the classrooms and hallways only.Mike Murphy, with construction management firm Consigli, laid out the phasing of the project for the committee Tuesday as well.He said Phase 1 of the project will start Sept. 1 and end in December. This will include all work on the inside and outside of the first floor. Phase 2 will see work begin on the second floor, interior and exterior, which will run from Jan. 1 to April 15, and Phase 3 will run from April to June.Murphy said the facade will be worked on floor-by-floor to reduce classroom interference, while the soccer field to the left of the school will be used for parking and storage of equipment and materials.?We will be taking precautions to not disrupt the learning day and the learning experience,” said Murphy, who also noted the field will be fully restored when the project is over.Murphy said Phase 4 of the project will include work on the cafeteria and auditorium.?It?s fast and there?s a lot going on,” said Murphy. “But there?s been a lot of planning going on. We?ve done this before and we?re confident we have a pretty solid start to the plan.”Murphy said it will be a “balancing act” to try and keep noise to a minimum while students are in class. He said most of the “noisy” work will likely be done early in the morning before classes start, but noted construction noise is inevitable.?We have to condition the occupants to tolerate a little more noise and condition the workers to make a little less noise,” said Murphy. “We need to work together to make is all happen.”The Belmonte Building Committee will meet again on May 7 at 3:30 p.m. in the School Committee room.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].