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Texas-based construction firm Procedeo has won the contract to manage the largest school bond in Portland history.
Portland Public Schools announced the selection Nov. 18.
If the Portland School Board approves the contract, the request for proposals says Procedeo would provide “comprehensive professional program and project management services” for the $1.83 billion bond passed by voters in May. That includes overseeing bond-funded construction projects, among them three high school modernizations at Cleveland, Ida B. Wells and Jefferson, to ensure they are completed on schedule and within budget.
The district initially brought in Procedeo in June with a $149,500 contract, just under the spending threshold that would require School Board approval, asking the firm to produce a comprehensive report outlining steps to streamline Jefferson’s construction and realize cost savings. That report, which WW obtained last week, proposed shaving an entire year off the school’s opening date by readying the first and second floors for student use, but notably did not estimate the costs of such a proposal.
The request for proposals to manage the bond came after the district in September expanded its contract with Procedeo by $487,500 to give the firm oversight through December of its Office of School Modernization, which has struggled with turnover. Back then, a couple of School Board members sounded an alarm about the lack of a competitive bidding process and hesitated to approve the contract extension, but it ultimately passed with a 6-1 vote.
In winning the RFP, Procedeo beat out two local competitors, both based in Lake Oswego. The term of a contract awarded through an RFP is five years with the possibility of up to two renewals for up to two years each.
“As a new administration, we are building the systems, structures, and project-delivery approaches that allow us to move this work forward with greater clarity and accountability,” PPS Superintendent Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong said in a Nov. 18 statement. “Procedeo’s proposal aligns with that direction.”
