Section 2.08 - Feasibility Study - Module 3(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.(2)Design and Educational Program and Budget Statement for Educational Objectives(a) As part of the Feasibility Study phase, the Eligible Applicant shall submit, in the format prescribed by the Authority, a Design and Educational Program, and a Budget Statement for Educational Objectives. The Eligible Applicant shall outline the specific educational program goals for a Proposed Project and how the Eligible Applicant proposes to align those goals with the operating budget for the District and Proposed Project.(b) The Design and Educational Program shall be subject to the approval of the Authority. The Authority may provide, when in the discretion of the Authority it is necessary, technical assistance to the Eligible Applicant with the development of Design and Educational Program elements. The Authority may review the Budget Statement for Educational Objectives in the context of the Design and Educational Program, and the Authority may consult the Division of Local Services at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. The Authority may require that the Eligible Applicant make changes, adjustments or modifications to the Design and Educational Program or the Budget Statement for Educational Objectives in order to receive approval from the Authority.(c) After approval of the Design and Educational Program by the Authority, the Eligible Applicant shall certify to the Authority, in the manner prescribed by the Authority, that the local school committee has voted to approve the Design and Educational Program and the Budget Statement for Educational Objectives in a manner prescribed by the Authority and provide the Authority with a copy of the local school committee vote.(3)Preferred Schematic. In the preferred schematic submittal, the Eligible Applicant shall notify the Authority in writing of any existing or potential site ownership, control, or use issues, including but not limited to, site issues related to eminent domain, Article 97 of the Amendments to the Massachusetts Constitution, Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), title, easements, and lease issues. The notification shall include the Eligible Applicant's plan and timeline to resolve these issues to ensure compliance with 963 CMR 2.09(5). The existence of such site issues at the time that the Board of Directors of the Authority considers a proposed project for Project Scope and Budget approval, may result in a conditional vote and may delay the execution of the Project Funding Agreement. After the Eligible Applicant has concluded a feasibility study and selected a preferred schematic option, such option may be presented to the Authority's Board of Directors for approval to move to the Schematic Design phase of the Authority's grant program.
Amended by Mass Register Issue 1521, eff. 5/10/2024.