Colman-Egan School District officials and the engineering firm overseeing a new addition to the local school are pleased with the options before them.
A bid opening this past Tuesday had Kyle Fisel, project manager with the engineering firm ISG, school business manager Luann Smith, and Superintendent Scott Hemmer reviewing 14 bids for the 2024-25 school expansion project.
That high a number of bidders, Fisel noted, has been unusual, as the market has not allowed for it.
“In recent years, since COVID and post-COVID, it’s been a struggle to get contractors. People are super busy, and they’re not interested in bidding on work because they have a lot of work, but there seems to have been a change in that lately, and all of a sudden people are very hungry for work again. We were very happy to see this many people again because it drives the competition for a lower project cost,” Fisel said.

Representatives for each company sat in the school lunchroom during the letting, listening intently and jotting down competitors’ bids, as Fisel read each new proposal aloud. By law, the district must go with the lowest bidder unless there is something missing or the bid is incomplete.
If that is the case, the project will likely be offered to Puetz Design & Build of Mitchell.
All of the bids came in between $4 million and $5 million. Puetz bid $4,145,135, the lowest by a couple hundred thousand dollars. The highest bid, including all aspects of the project, was just over $4.9 million.
With that final cost as the target, no portion or final touch of the proposed $6.3 million project would be left undone.
“We believe all components should remain within the project given the bids,” Hemmer said.
Notice of the award was scheduled to be given on Aug. 19, but a decision will likely be announced at the school board meeting this past Monday after calls have been made to verify availability. Fisel said he planned to have a letter of recommendation ready by the time the board meets.
Construction is expected to begin this fall, but the final decision rests with the contractor and their ability to complete the project before the start of the 2025-26 school year.
The $6.3 million addition, approved by voters this past fall, includes a new preschool room, six other classrooms, a flexible learning space, and a new weight room. The weight room will be a shared space for public use, but details on that element are yet to be determined.