Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 963 CMR - MASS. SCHOOL BUILDING AUTHORITY › Title 963 CMR 2.00 - School Building Grant Program › Section 2.08 - Feasibility Study - Module 3

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
(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.