More improvements planned for Barrington library building

New roof getting installed; interior work to follow

By Josh Bickford
Posted 1/20/20

The Barrington Town Council recently approved a $984,925 bid to complete a series of interior renovations at the Peck Center building.

The interior work, which was approved by a 5-0 vote at the …

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More improvements planned for Barrington library building

New roof getting installed; interior work to follow

Posted

The Barrington Town Council recently approved a $984,925 bid to complete a series of interior renovations at the Peck Center building.

The interior work, which was approved by a 5-0 vote at the council's Jan. 7 meeting, is part of a larger improvement project at the Peck Center. Currently, crews from Apollo Roofing and Sheet Metal are replacing the roof at the center. 

About half of a $6 million bond approved in 2018 is paying for the Peck Center work.

Interior renovations

The town will award the interior renovations bid to Pawtucket-based Coletta Contracting Company.

The interior work will include improvements to the Adult Enrichment Center, which was formerly called the senior center. The main hall, offices and rear meeting room will be reconfigured, and crews will build a 300-square foot lounge. There will also be a multi-purpose room and three separate offices. 

There will be a new entrance door and a renovated gallery space. Some improvements will also be made to the center's kitchen space and bathrooms. 

"New luxury vinyl tile flooring" will be installed in the main hall, multi-purpose room and gallery.

Improvements will also be made in the space occupied by Tap-In — Touch A Person In Need. The nonprofit organization has existed for more than three decades in Barrington and services those in need throughout the East Bay.

Tap-In is located on the first floor of the Peck Center. The renovations planned for that space include addressing ADA accessibility issues with the current layout.

A new 300-square foot office for Tap-In will be constructed to the left of the main entrance and crews will also build a new reception area. A new food pantry will be constructed in an area that is currently used for storing books. There will also be space dedicated to Tap-In storage and book storage for Friends of the Library. 

"The project also includes a new landing outside the Tap-In door, eliminating a step into the vestibule area," stated a memo from Barrington Town Planner Phil Hervey. "An interior door in the vestibule will help reduce drafts from the main door into the reception area."

Officials said a handicap ramp for the Tap-In main entrance is being proposed as part of a separate project.

Roof work

The roof replacement project was originally approved by the council on June 3, 2019, at a cost of $1,698,000. The contract included a 10 percent contingency. Based on a recommendation from the town's consultant, the contingency for the roof work was reduced to $30,000 and the balance was shifted to the interior renovations. The town council also approved using $19,140 from the "Environmental Issues Capital Reserve" to the interior renovations, to pay for the removal of the old boiler and asbestos.

Who bid on the project

A total of seven companies initially submitted bids to complete the interior renovations:

• Coletta Contracting (Pawtucket) — $999,150

• Tower Construction (Cranston) — $1,024,000

• J.J. Cardosi, Inc. (Riverside) — $1,067,600

• ADS Construction (East Providence) — $1,082,000

• Pariseault Builders (Warwick) — $1,090,000

• E.W. Burman (Warwick) — $1,099,000

• Maron Construction Co. (Providence) — $1,150,000

According to a memo from Barrington Town Planner Phil Hervey, all the bids received for the project exceeded the amount of money the town had initially planned to spend. The town, along with a consultant, met with the three lowest bidders and discussed potential cost-saving measures. 

"A revised bid form was provided to each contractor, with a list of additional alternates for reducing the cost of the project," stated the memo. 

The sealed bids were received on Dec. 20 and the town discussed the revised bids, which included alternates and supplemental bid items. Some of the supplemental items include eliminating the commercial grade dishwasher planned for the Adult Enrichment Center kitchen; reducing the extent of the HVAC in the Tap-In space; eliminating the wood floor finish for the Tap-In and library storage areas; eliminating the decorative metal edging for the drop-down ceiling lighting panel in the Adult Enrichment Center; and replacing the more expensive flooring with "equivalent materials."

 

After figuring in the alternate and supplemental information, Coletta's bid dropped to $984,925.

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