(1) Following the
selection of an Owner's Project Manager and a Designer, the Eligible Applicant
shall conduct a Feasibility Study in accordance with the Authority's
Feasibility Study requirements.
(a) The
Authority shall require that a Feasibility Study be performed to understand the
extent of deficiencies identified in the Statement of Interest or the
facilities assessment, if one was performed and to begin to explore the
formulation of a solution to those deficiencies as outlined in the Eligible
Applicant's Statement of Interest. The Authority may require the Eligible
Applicant to conduct a Feasibility Study of the facility addressed in the
Statement of Interest and/or any other facilities relevant to the facility
addressed in the Statement of Interest.
(b) The Feasibility Study shall be performed
at a time and in a format and manner prescribed by the Authority and the
Authority may reimburse the Eligible Applicant for a portion of the costs of
conducting such Feasibility Study, provided that the Eligible Applicant fully
cooperates with the Authority in conducting such Feasibility Study. Feasibility
Studies conducted unilaterally by the Eligible Applicant, or without the prior
written acknowledgement and concurrence of the Authority, or in a manner or
format not acceptable to the Authority, or that, in the discretion of the
Authority, do not contain the required information or were not conducted in a
manner and format consistent with guidelines developed by the Authority, may,
in the sole discretion of the Authority, be non-reimbursable and will be
entirely at the expense of the Eligible Applicant and the results of any such
Feasibility Study may not be accepted by the Authority, all in its sole
discretion. The Eligible Applicant shall provide complete access to its school
facilities for the purposes of conducting a Feasibility Study. In the event
that the Eligible Applicant does not cooperate with the Authority in conducting
a Feasibility Study, which, in the reasonable judgment of the Authority results
in a delay of the Feasibility Study or a delay in the application process, or
conducts a Feasibility Study that is unacceptable to the Authority, the
Authority may decline further consideration of the Eligible Applicant's
Application, decline to reimburse the Eligible Applicant for any costs
associated with the Feasibility Study or deduct a portion of the Feasibility
Study costs from any Total Facilities Grant which the Eligible Applicant may
receive approval from the Authority or from any other funds provided to the
Eligible Applicant from the Authority. The Authority reserves the right to
require an Eligible Applicant to revise a Feasibility Study or conduct a new
Feasibility Study.
(c) The Eligible
Applicant shall submit to the Authority progress reports, draft copies,
documentation and/or other information on the Feasibility Study at
predetermined benchmarks while said Study is being conducted.
(d) The purpose of the Feasibility Study is
to investigate potential options and solutions, including cost estimates in a
format prescribed by the Authority, for the deficiencies and issues identified
in the facilities assessment or study, if any assessment was performed, the
Design and Educational Program, the Educational Facilities Capital Plan, if
any, the Enrollment Projection, and in the properly submitted Statement of
Interest by an Eligible Applicant. The Feasibility Study shall be conducted in
accordance with the guidelines established by the Authority. Said guidelines
may require Authority participation in the execution of the Feasibility Study
as well as include multiple steps requiring Authority approval at the
conclusion of each step.
(e) The
Feasibility Study shall include, but not be limited to:
1. an examination and identification of
potential alternatives to construction or renovation of a facility, whether or
not such alternatives are eligible for Authority reimbursement;
2. at least one alternative that shall be an
analysis of a code update/base repair option to document the potential use and
value of the existing school facility and to be used as a benchmark for
comparative analysis of all other alternatives;
3. an analysis of school district student
school assignment practices and an analysis of available space in other school
facilities in the district;
4.
consideration of utilization of under-utilized or vacant facilities potentially
available for the proposed use for the Proposed Project;
5. consideration of the lease, rental or
acquisition of existing buildings that could be made available for school use
pursuant to M.G.L. c. 70B, § 8;
6. consideration of the use of regionalizing
or tuition agreements with adjacent school districts pursuant to M.G.L. c. 70B,
§ 8;
7. a detailed and
itemized cost estimate for each alternative;
8. an evaluation of the environmental and
cost impact of construction phasing on students and staff occupying a renovated
building, and any relocation options or off-hour construction that may be
required for each alternative;
9.
an evaluation of the existing conditions at no more than three sites, unless
otherwise determined by the Authority, which shall include, but not be limited
to, a geotechnical evaluation and soils exploration, a Phase I Initial Site
Investigation conforming to 310 CMR 40.00: Massachusetts Contingency
Plan, performed by a licensed site professional.
(f) The Feasibility Study shall include a
review of the District's operational and capital budget and said review shall
include, but not be limited to:
1. a review
and analysis of the Budget Statement for Educational Objectives;
2. a review and analysis of the District's
operating and capital budget;
3.
consideration of the ability of the District to support the operating and
capital costs of each alternative, including the increased costs of
professional development and instructional, utilities, maintenance and
transportation support and any debt service associated with each alternative,
which may be in addition to costs already being incurred.
The Authority may require that the Feasibility Study shall
include a plan for each alternative studied showing how the district intends to
fund all costs associated with that alternative. Said review and analysis, if
required, shall be in format determined by the Authority.
(g) The Authority, in its sole
discretion, may share in a portion of the costs associated with the Feasibility
Study provided that the Eligible Applicant has cooperated in all aspects of the
Study and the Application process. The Authority reserves the right to approve
all costs associated with any Feasibility Study for which an Eligible Applicant
is seeking reimbursement from the Authority and no Eligible Applicant shall
enter into a contract for the provision of services related to the Feasibility
Study without prior written approval from the Authority. The Eligible Applicant
shall use the standard contracts developed by the Authority. In the event that
the Authority decides to share in a portion of the costs associated with the
Feasibility Study, the Authority shall calculate its share of approved costs of
the Feasibility Study using the formula set forth in M.G.L. c. 70B, §
10(a), except that no incentive percentage points, as described in M.G.L. c.
70B, § 10(a)(C), shall be awarded at the time of the Feasibility Study
Agreement.
(h) In the event that
the Authority determines there are extraordinary or non-customary costs that
are not warranted, the Authority may require the Eligible Applicant to fund all
said extraordinary or non-customary costs and the Authority may determine that
all costs associated with the Feasibility Study are non-reimbursable and that
the Eligible Applicant fund all costs associated with the Feasibility
Study.
(i) The Authority may
require the Eligible Applicant to fully fund certain environmental or
geotechnical site testing costs beyond initial investigatory costs.
(j) The Eligible Applicant shall provide the
Authority with the results of environmental assessment or assessments, if any.
For purposes of
963
CMR 2.08, the assessment of environmental
factors is required primarily to assess the feasibility and cost of
construction and operation of a potential project to address the deficiencies
identified in the Statement of Interest. The requirement of a Feasibility Study
and Schematic Design is separate and independent of any applicable requirements
of the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Act (MEPA) and MEPA regulations,
including the filing of an Environmental Notification Form (ENF) and MEPA
review procedures.
(k) The
Authority shall bear no responsibility for the findings or results of any
Feasibility Study, environmental assessment, geotechnical site testing, nor for
any site remediation, clean-up or other site remediation services. By requiring
an Eligible Applicant to undertake a Feasibility Study, the Authority is in no
way assuming any duty to ensure that a site of a Project is not contaminated or
environmentally unsafe. Nothing stated herein shall preclude an Eligible
Applicant from holding public forums, meetings, or discussions regarding any
elements of an application or project.
(l) The final Feasibility Study Report shall
be in the format prescribed by the Authority and shall include, but not be
limited to, a detailed scope of the Proposed Project, architectural and site
drawings as required to convey a successful organization of spaces that will
satisfy the special and organizational requirements of the approved Design and
Educational Program, a description of the major building construction systems
which are proposed for the Proposed Project, a budget cost estimate in the
format and in as much detail as required by the Authority, a projected
cash-flow, permitting requirements, a proposed project design and construction
schedule including consideration of phasing of the Proposed Project,
sustainable design goals including minimization of environmental and
transportation impacts, and ways the Proposed Project can meet those goals, and
elements of construction or demolition waste that would be
recyclable.
(m) At the conclusion
of the Feasibility Study, the Authority may determine that the Application does
not warrant further consideration at that time, pursuant to the priority
criteria established in M.G.L. c. 70B, including but not limited to M.G.L. c.
70B, §§ 6, 8, and 9(a).
(n) In the event an Eligible Applicant
receives a grant for a Feasibility Study but does not complete a project, the
Authority shall not later pay for duplicative costs for a subsequent
feasibility study if the Eligible Applicant later returns to the Authority's
pipeline for the same school or same facility issues. The Authority may decline
to provide any grant funding for any or all portions of a second or subsequent
Feasibility Study conducted for the same school or same facility
issues.
(2)
Design and Educational Program and Budget Statement for Educational
Objectives
(a) As part of the
Feasibility Study phase, the Eligible Applicant shall submit, in the format
prescribed by the Authority, a Design and Educational Program, and a Budget
Statement for Educational Objectives. The Eligible Applicant shall outline the
specific educational program goals for a Proposed Project and how the Eligible
Applicant proposes to align those goals with the operating budget for the
District and Proposed Project.
(b)
The Design and Educational Program shall be subject to the approval of the
Authority. The Authority may provide, when in the discretion of the Authority
it is necessary, technical assistance to the Eligible Applicant with the
development of Design and Educational Program elements. The Authority may
review the Budget Statement for Educational Objectives in the context of the
Design and Educational Program, and the Authority may consult the Division of
Local Services at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. The Authority may
require that the Eligible Applicant make changes, adjustments or modifications
to the Design and Educational Program or the Budget Statement for Educational
Objectives in order to receive approval from the Authority.
(c) After approval of the Design and
Educational Program by the Authority, the Eligible Applicant shall certify to
the Authority, in the manner prescribed by the Authority, that the local school
committee has voted to approve the Design and Educational Program and the
Budget Statement for Educational Objectives in a manner prescribed by the
Authority and provide the Authority with a copy of the local school committee
vote.
(3)
Preferred Schematic. In the preferred schematic
submittal, the Eligible Applicant shall notify the Authority in writing of any
existing or potential site ownership, control, or use issues, including but not
limited to, site issues related to eminent domain, Article 97 of the Amendments
to the Massachusetts Constitution, Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act
(MEPA), title, easements, and lease issues. The notification shall include the
Eligible Applicant's plan and timeline to resolve these issues to ensure
compliance with
963
CMR 2.09(5). The existence
of such site issues at the time that the Board of Directors of the Authority
considers a proposed project for Project Scope and Budget approval, may result
in a conditional vote and may delay the execution of the Project Funding
Agreement.
After the Eligible Applicant has concluded a feasibility study
and selected a preferred schematic option, such option may be presented to the
Authority's Board of Directors for approval to move to the Schematic Design
phase of the Authority's grant program.