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BTC welding expansion reevaluated

JANESVILLE — Bids came in far over budget for an expansion of Blackhawk Technical College’s welding lab.

The project was to help BTC increase its output in the high-demand career field.

Projections were for $450,000 to remodel the former automotive mechanics area on the main campus for welding use, but lowest of four bidders was $828,200. The highest was $1.13 million.

The administration recommended that alternatives to those bids be explored over the next month, and the BTC Board agreed at its meeting Wednesday night.

BTC spokesman Len Walker said the board was told that the construction market is volatile, and the price of steel and petroleum-based products are factors in the higher prices.

Alternatives listed in a memo include:

-- Increase the budget to accommodate the lowest bid, which was offered by Gilbank Construction.

-- Analyze the bids and find alternatives to those costs. Preliminary indications show the biggest variances to the project were in the areas of the electrical and heating/ventilation/air conditioning trades.

Doug Barnes of Zimmerman Architectural Studios, which made the original estimate, said he would work with those trades to identify possible savings.

-- Downsize the project.

-- Wait a year and reconsider design and needs.

The topic is expected to come up at the board’s meeting July 16.

In other business Wednesday, the board:

-- Unanimously approved a one-year contract extension and a raise for President Eric Larson. His salary will increase by 3 percent, or $4,422, to $151,823. His tax-sheltered annuity increases by $1,000, to $12,000.

-- Held a public hearing on the 2008-09 budget and adopted the budget. The $44.33 million budget includes a projected tax levy of $20.62 million, a 4.9 percent increase.

-- Granted Superior Performance Recognition awards to Dee Fisher, information Technology, $2,000; Diane Witowski, Children's Learning Center, $2,000; and Kirk Plank, dean of manufacturing, construction and aviation, $3,000.

-- Authorized borrowing $2.5 million for capital equipment and remodeling projects.

-- Confirmed the appointment of Erin Maney as manager of online learning and assessment and curriculum, at a salary of $52,000. Maney most recently was a technical writing instructor and instructional assistant at Wayne and Finger Lakes Technical and Career Centers in New York.

-- Accepted a declaration of intent to retire from math/economics instructor James Rich. Rich intends to retire July 31 after 15 years with the district. He was twice named BTC teacher of the year.

-- Recognized retirees Joanne Capes and Sandra Paulsen. Capes, with 13 years of service, is administrative assistant to the director in the community and business development division. Paulsen, with 25 years of service, is a computer instructor. She was the first full-time corporate trainer hired in the Wisconsin Technical College System.