Improvements to M.J. Fletcher Elementary School in Jamestown are included in the first phase of a capital improvement project. School board members on Tuesday approved six construction bids for Phase One. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

A half-dozen construction bids for the first phase of a multi-million-dollar capital improvement project at Jamestown Public Schools were approved Tuesday during a brief special meeting of the school board.

Phase One of the project, at a total cost of about $16.2 million, will focus on M.J. Fletcher Elementary School, the Tech Academy and the bus garage.

“There’s a lot of sinks and sidewalks and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), that sort of thing, around the various buildings in our district,” said Dr. Kevin Whitaker, Jamestown Public Schools superintendent. “Also, there’s some bus garage work like parking lots and the floor at the bus garage. So it’s little pieces here, there, and everywhere, and then we roll into the next phase, which is the high school, which is the biggie.”

Focus at the Tech Academy includes modernization of classrooms, as well as work to the building’s plumbing, electrical and ventilation.

Though school board members are scheduled to meet next week for their January monthly meeting, Whitaker said it was key to have the bids approved quickly.

“It’s important that we approve the bids so that all of our contractors who got the bids can start ordering materials and begin the work,” he said. “And we wanted to do that, even a week earlier than we would have at a regular board meeting.”

Construction for the first phase is slated to begin just prior to the summer break and continue through the 2024 school year.

Bids for the following were approved Tuesday during the special meeting: general trades, Kinley Corp.; electrical, Ahlstrom Schaffer; site work, Lakeshore Paving; roofing, AW Farrell; mechanical, DV Brown; and plumbing, MKS Plumbing.

Phase Two of the project, at a cost of about $41.7 million, will largely focus on Jamestown High School with construction scheduled to commence in the spring of 2024.

Improvements at the high school, as noted by school board members last year, could include an upgrade to the school auditorium, creation of a secure vestibule at the main entrance, upgrades to the old gym, cafeteria and kitchen renovations and work on the school’s pool, among others.

Phase Three, at a cost of about $21.6 million, will focus on Persell Middle School, Lincoln Elementary School and CC Ring Elementary School. Construction is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2026.

There will also be district-wide information technology upgrades at all Jamestown schools.

Residents in the Jamestown Public Schools District approved the $86.5 million capital improvement project by a referendum vote in May 2021. State aid will cover 98% of the project’s cost while the district will use $1.2 million from its capital reserve fund and $1,070,000 in remaining state EXCEL aid from several years ago.