KINGSTON — At a special meeting Friday, the Wyoming Valley West School Board approved a change order on the contract to replace the track at the high school field in Plymouth.
The board voted 7-1, to approve the change order in the amount of $169,897. The change order is for new asphalt under the rubberized track — the original contract had been approved at a cost of $391,000.
Board Member Tim McGinley voted against the motion.
The meeting lasted about five minutes and one board member was absent.
“The amount of the change order concerns me, because the amount is 45% of the original contract,” McGinley said. “It seem a bit large to me. I just felt the cost was inappropriate.”
The change order was discussed at length at the board’s regular meeting on Wednesday when it heard an update from Keystone Sports Construction regarding track renovations at the former Huber Field in Plymouth.
At that meeting, Board member Brian Dubaskas revealed the cost of the track renovation has increased by $169,897 from the previously approved cost of approximately $391,000.
According to Keystone Sports, the asphalt beneath the track needs to be repaired before the rubber track can be put in place.
Keystone said that not repairing the asphalt beneath the track would essentially cancel the renovation.
The additional payment amount resulted in a lengthy discussion between board members.
At Wednesday’s meeting, McGinley questioned Keystone’s findings and suggested more could have been done to prevent the surprise cost addition.
Board member Paul Keating then offered context to the track renovation process, noting it is not uncommon for additional renovations and associated costs to be uncovered as a construction project unfolds. He added that failing to renovate the asphalt will result in losing the track altogether, at least until the winter weather passes.
McGinley acknowledged this but questioned the method by which the initial $391,000 estimate was determined. He also expressed concern regarding the timing.