EAST PROVIDENCE — The proposed near-complete renovation of Martin Middle School at the mid-way moment of the design and estimate process remains on budget and in line with the requirements of the state authority.

Members of the School Committee were told as much at the Tuesday, June 13, meeting of the body held at East Providence High School's Elmasian Auditorium.

James Jordan, a founding partner of the Ai3 architectural firm now long associated with school construction projects throughout the city, led an update on the MMS proposal, which included input from Anne DaSilva, a Senior Manager for the Peregrine Group, the district's owner project manager.

The $128.475 million sum currently predicted to be required to perform the work is, according to Jordan, "right on target... this is really great news. We're right where we told RIDE we would be at this point in the project."

RIDE, or the Rhode Island Department of Education, has final say on all remaining aspects of the project, which has two funding sources.

In November of 2022, city residents approved a referendum seeking the authority to bond $148 million for the Martin Middle School project, significant updates to Waddington Elementary School and other infrastructure needs at buildings throughout the district.

Also, the city/district will have access to another $250 million-worth of school construction bond money approved by the state-wide electorate at the same November 2022 vote.

As was the case with the new high school project, if as envisioned the latest projects hit all RIDE mandates, the final price tag for residents will be far less than the working total. East Providence could be reimbursed by the state upwards of 68.5 percent on a large portion of the cost.

The June 2023 update represents East Providence's submission for "Stage 2" of the MMS component. It is the second "check-in" mandated by RIDE, Jordan noted, adding there are still two more before the last and final approval is given by the state body.

"We're right in the middle of that and we're in a very good spot at this point," Jordan said. Stages 3 and 4 must be met before near the end of the calendar year, the last coming with "100 percent" of the design and costs determined by November 30.

Earlier in his presentation, Jordan referred to the previous evening's the School District's Building Committee meeting where much of the intricacies of the project have been hashed out over the last several months.

Specifically at the June 12 meeting of the sub-group, Jordan said the relative parties were able to finalize cuts, a process he deemed "value management" and "value engineering."

Over $3 million in savings were made in that manner by reducing square footage and costs while still keeping the project "in tune with educational specifications."

Some examples include installing smaller window, using poured epoxy floors rather than tile and removing some ornamental fencing and pavers.

Jordan added, "It's really super good news that this project is on budget. A lot of projects are way over budget at this point...But we're in a great spot...We can breath a sigh of relief especially with the crazy construction market and considering the escalating costs that our out there we're in really good shape."

Reached after Tuesday's meeting for comment, Building Committee co-chair Joel Monteiro concurred with much of Jordan's sentiment, adding his group, of which he shares leadership with Nate Cahoon, is much more comfortable with the overall process.

"The Building Committee has been very engaged," said Monteiro, who did not seek reelection to the School Committee in 2022 after spending 10 years on the body. He and Cahoon also shepherded basically the same Building Committee through the EPHS project.

"I think what went through with the high school is serving us well," he continued. "We have a little more understanding of what the next steps are and what pieces to look out for. We feel pretty good about where we are with the Martin project."

Pre-construction site work on the Martin campus is expected to begin almost as soon as the 2022-23 term ends in the coming days. Later this year, the pace of the project will necessitate students going to school while construction takes place.

"Everyone is aware there are a lot of pieces to this project," Monteiro added. "Unlike the high school where we could build separate and then move everyone in at once there are going to be some shared spaces throughout the Martin project. It's a little more complicated, but we're all working hard to minimize any disruptions for the students and staff."