Lend Lease Partners with Chicago Public Schools

CHICAGO — Chicago Public Schools has announced the Lend Lease team, in conjunction with Primera Engineers, DSR Group, SPAAN Tech, Rubinos & Mesia and Comprehensive Construction Consultants, as the new construction manager for its capital improvement program.

“Our past experience has lent itself to us being picked as well as some of our technology that we have and things that we could provide to Chicago Public Schools,” said Norra Daye, senior marketing manager of Lend Lease.

The contract is set to target 128 schools with capital needs as part of the ongoing capital program, with an additional 340 projects targeting energy savings in the next fiscal year. The contract holds Lend Lease responsible for renovation and life-safety work for Chicago Public Schools. The contract will last 21 months with three, one-year renewal possibilities.

The Carver Military High School is one of the schools facing large renovations thanks to the capital program. The plan is to tuck-point all of the masonry façade; rebuild any damaged sections of the masonry; replace the existing curtainwall and roofing system with new Chicago Energy Code compliant systems; and replace rooftop units and renovate the school’s existing mechanical system.

In addition, the school will receive new exterior and interior signage, classrooms, corridor walls, ceilings and floors that are water damaged will be refinished, and the elevator will be retrofitted with a new cab and American Disability Act (ADA) compliant controls.

Other renovations include: all student toilet rooms; providing a new unisex/staff toilet room; renovating the auditorium to include a new access ramp to ADA seating; renovating the gymnasium and first-floor student locker rooms; renovations to the water system, such as new hot water boosters to assure ample hot water is available; crawl space and an emergency generator. Lastly, the school will receive a new building management system to control and monitor mechanical and electrical equipment.

Morgan Park High School will also receive major renovations including a new emergency generator in case of disasters. Classrooms will be refinished along with the cafeteria, which will replace windows and the curtainwall. The school will be provided with ADA accessible doors for rooms with ADA-compliant floors. In addition the current stair lift will be replaced with an ADA-compliant elevator.

Lend Lease will provide pre-construction oversight services, on-site construction administrations and project closeout, or a review of the project for substantial completion, for all Chicago school’s under the contract, according to Lend Lease’s project sheet.

From 1996-2002, Lend Lease worked as the construction manager for the Capital Improvement Program and they have worked with over 20 local school districts in Chicago to provide construction services, project management, additions, safety upgrades and master planning.