Meeting re Cost Overruns at new schools Thur 8 am

[Michael Deneen]

Thanks to Ed for offering some insight on this.

[m buckley]

Mr. Favre, I had heard this was coming last October ( pre-election). The discussion centered around the fact that Summers and the city wouldn't own it till post election. How is it that I heard it, Corey Rossen assumed it, and the powers that be are only bringing it to light now. As an aside that R.N.C stuff reads like crap thrown against the wall. I hope your position isn't we didn't know about the R.N.C and we definitely didn't anticipate that there would be construction in advance of it's arrival.

[Edward Favre]

I don't know what the source(s) was/were in October and did not have any such reliable information then. There certainly was and is plenty of innuendo and consternation due to the hospital issue. The school construction issue has nothing to do with that, the Mayor, the City administration, or its affairs.

All of the knowledgeable construction people I've heard from agree that the RNC and other construction boom is driving prices in this region. We knew the RNC was on the horizon and, had it not been for the delay in State funding due to the recession, we would have been done with the school project by now. When the State resumed funding in 2013 and told we had to go, we did. The timing conflict with the RNC was not in our control.

[Brian Essi]

Mr. Favre,

I disagree--this is related to the hospital---
your 4 colleagues on the board were all Build Lakewood members who favored tearing down the hospital and giving away $70M all to try to get some money from the yet to be formed "health and wellness" foundation and a piece of encumbered land with an empty single purpose building that can't be used for that single purpose.

Is it any wonder they have no clue how to Build Lakewood Schools?

Geniuses!!!

Note the Einstein quote below ---this won't end well for our kids or the taxpayers with the same "thinkers" thinking they can solve the problem they created. By all means hurry up and have the meetings all in a row--it won't change the outcome. Just send us the bill.

[Corey Rossen]

Mr. Favre, I had heard this was coming last October ( pre-election). The discussion centered around the fact that Summers and the city wouldn't own it till post election. How is it that I heard it, Corey Rossen assumed it, and the powers that be are only bringing it to light now. As an aside that R.N.C stuff reads like crap thrown against the wall. I hope your position isn't we didn't know about the R.N.C and we definitely didn't anticipate that there would be construction in advance of it's arrival.

I did not assume anything. I just know that anytime I build something the costs run over. Though I was saying it in jest to mess with Stan, it is true for me.

Nearly all construction costs run over in almost every industry so I am not sure why people are so alarmed that these costs ran over as well. I have come to expect it in construction, regardless of set budgets.

Stan, in 2 weeks you can start moving in.

[Edward Favre]

I understand the distrust and anguish the hospital issue has generated. However, the Schools project was publicly planned and started before that issue, has been 2/3 completed, and the Schools and City will be far better off when it is completed. We're not loosing by it, we're gaining by it. There have been people from all sides of the issue(s) involved. Disagree with those that we may, let's not shoot ourselves in the foot.

[Brian Essi]

I understand the distrust and anguish the hospital issue has generated. However, the Schools project was publicly planned and started before that issue, has been 2/3 completed, and the Schools and City will be far better off when it is completed. We're not loosing by it, we're gaining by it. There have been people from all sides of the issue(s) involved. Disagree with those that we may, let's not shoot ourselves in the foot.

Maybe Linda et al can free up some the money from the yet to be formed wellness foundation for the schools before they give the rest of it to CCF and Foran

[Jim O'Bryan]

I Disagree with those that we may, let's not shoot ourselves in the foot.

All

This city, before selling out for an endless dream of crappy strip malls, stood for education and learning.

All over the county people were amazed at Lakewood, an inner ring suburb, was building new schools and a new library.

Now we are nearly finished no matter what you think of the elected officials and city leaders jerking you around, we must finish them,

We must finish the schools and fund them. As I have said before, if you do not like the management, take it out on them.

Schools matter, new schools matter, and good schools matter.