Salamanca's $21.5M capital project proposed for May 17 ballot

By Kellen M. Quigley | Managing Editor

The Salamanca school community received its first look at the next $21.5 million phase of the district’s ongoing capital project, which will be on the ballot for voters May 17.

Superintendent Robert Breidenstein presented the project overview Tuesday during a special Board of Education meeting.

A majority of Phase 4 pertains to athletic site improvements on the Iroquois Drive campus, Breidenstein explained, most notably a new multi-purpose track and field, new tennis courts, a new turf softball field and renovations to the athletic grounds and support buildings.

“If you think of Vets Park and all of the stuff that’s there to support athletics, we’re looking at replicating that with a slightly different design because of the field orientations,” he said. “All of the support buildings at Vets will come onto the main campus to finish Phase 3 construction.”

This birds-eye view of the Salamanca school district’s Iroquois Drive campus shows what’s being planned for Phase 4 of its ongoing capital project.

Following the district’s Feb. 15 finance committee meeting, the project’s $21,489,881 price tag includes construction costs, a 15% design contingency, 24% escalation costs, a 7.5% construction contingency, 22% incidental fees and a 5% TERO fee.

“The important part for the community is that the $21.5 million comes at no impact to the tax levy,” Breidenstein said. “We will not come back to the community and say, ‘Can we please have more money?’ We are funding this with existing reserves and economic incentives that we have been planning for.”

Turner Construction is again the capital project construction firm the district will use, Breidenstein said, both for estimating the costs and managing the construction after approvals and accepted bids.

Along with the athletic upgrades, Phase 4 will include further roofing and site work, infrastructure upgrades on the main campus, most notably science rooms in Seneca Intermediate, and security upgrades, Breidenstein explained.

Some property acquisitions on Fern Avenue, Front Avenue and Hoy Street by the district in recent community votes will need demolition work done for the project, Breidenstein said. However, the district has decided those will be done internally rather than as part of the capi