During its monthly board meeting Sept. 14, the Warren County R-III School District learned that it will receive a $25,000 reimbursement related to its $10 million bond project.

The payback is due to a few oversights in the planning or construction phase that ultimately cost more than intended.

Wade Welch of Hoerner and Associates explained that the reimbursement of the bill, which will come directly from the engineering company, is due to difficulty with some of the work orders.

“There was a mistake with the elevator at the high school and we had some issues on the mechanical side,” said Welch. “Our typical goal for a project is to try to keep the change orders in the realm of 1 percent. This situation is worse than what we’d like to see, and we want to make sure we have a satisfied client.”

The elevator, which is part of the new multipurpose gymnasium at Warrenton High School, was installed as an access from the first-story wrestling workout room to the upstairs indoor practice facility.

“The specifications that were on the original drawing showed one type of elevator and when it came down to understanding exactly what the elevator would do and the drawings were finalized, it was realized the elevator would need an equipment room as part of the system,” said Assistant Superintendent Dr. Aaron Jones.

This took place after the bid process, and Jones says the district felt like it should have been part of the original bid.

The $25,000 reimbursement figure was a culmination of the total cost of the elevator equipment room and 10 percent of the electrical mechanical design change orders. Some of this is related to the new heating ventilation and air-conditioning systems installed in the high school, which needed some adjustments upon school starting.

Jones said the district feels comfortable about its working relationship with Hoerner and Associates, citing them as reputable and responsive.

“When you’re dealing with a $10 million project there are going to be some issues that arise,” he said. “Time is a factor in trying to get it done quickly. Any time we’ve had what we felt like was a problem, they came to the table in a very honest and forthright manner to work with us and get the problem fixed.”