Tucumcari schools to be revamped

TUCUMCARI — The Tucumcari Municpal School Board voted to award a hefty construction and renovation contract to a Clovis-based construction firm Tuesday afternoon.

William Reents, superintendent of Tucumcari schools, said the nearly $1.4 million contract awarded to Wilson and Wilson company is for phase one of a three-phase renovation process.

Reents said Tucumcari schools have dealt with officials from Wilson and Wilson before.

“Wilson and Wilson is an offshoot company of the same company that built our elementary school,” said Reents. “We have a very good working relationship with those people.”

Sonia Raftery, executive assistant to the superintendent, said the Wilson and Wilson bid was nearly $180,000 lower than the next highest bid.

“All the bids we accepted were higher than we expected,” said Raftery. “The price of steel and other construction materials is very high. We have a number of projects that will be completed during phase one but sadly we may have to delay replacing the windows at Tucumcari High School because the cost for the windows alone was $287,900.”

Some projects that are slated to be completed in coming months are new floors and a complete kitchen renovation at Mesa cafeteria. Raftery said new doors will be installed at the cafeteria as well.

“The cafeteria will also receive new furniture and a new roof,” said Raftery, “and the band room at the high school will receive new floors and carpeting.”

Raftery said the bid would have been awarded sooner but asbestos was found on tiles at the high school and the asbestos had to be removed before construction could begin.