The Dolores R-4A School District is suing a Denver architect firm for allegedly underestimating total costs of a major campus construction project.

The district alleges that Eidos Architects was contractually negligent when it estimated total construction costs for renovations and new buildings for the Dolores school to be $5,799,686.

The case was moving toward a jury trial in District Court, but a date has not yet been set.

According to lawsuit documents, the school district claims damages of between $1.5 million and $1.7 million because of the architect firm's cost estimate.

The suit says the mistake created cost overruns, reduced potential funding from a public bond and a BEST grant, and forced the project to be downsized.

"Eidos' opinion of probable construction costs for $5,799,686 was inaccurate and false by a substantial margin," states the lawsuit, signed by Stephen G. Everall, an attorney representing the school district.

"As a result ... Dolores was deprived of additional funding from the BEST program and from the Dolores voters at the 2012 November bond election."

The campus construction project is nearly complete and consists of new science and vocational trades buildings, an expanded elementary school, remodeled locker rooms, facility upgrades and landscaping.


Eidos project manager Rick Nearman disagrees with the lawsuit's allegations.


"Eidos does not believe the cost estimates were too low, at least for the project the school district said it wanted at the time," Nearman said in an email response to questions. 



The school district relied on the $5.8 million construction-cost estimate when it applied for a Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST) grant available through the Colorado Department of Education.

In August 2012, the District was awarded $2,618,558 in BEST grant funding, which included a 5 percent construction reserve fund of $289,984.

Required matching funds came from a tax bond, approved by voters in November 2012 for $3,471,111, bringing the total budget of the project to $6,089,669.

After the successful bond election, Dolores retained the services of a general contractor and hired a different architect.

The lawsuit states that as the construction team carried out is duties, it became apparent in the spring of 2013 that Eidos' opinion of probable construction costs was "woefully inadequate and would result in serious and substantial cost overruns even with the cash reserves."

As a result, according to the complaint, "the construction team expended otherwise unnecessary and additional costs to revise reduce and even eliminate certain improvements" outlined in the revised master plan for construction.

Dolores school officials asserted that even with the reduced project scope, the project still "substantially exceeded Eidos' opinion of probable construction costs." The school therefore had to dip into its general funds to complete the project.


Eidos again refuted the claims, stating a different architect hired by the district changed the scope of the project.


"The project the new architect designed turned out to be much different than what Eidos proposed," wrote Nearman. "So the district is comparing apples to oranges, which is unfair."

The district alleges that deficiencies in the cost estimate included calculation errors in the square footage of the improvements, misidentification of new improvements as renovations, and failure to consider applicable state and federal laws.

To stay within the bond and grant budget, the district eliminated $1 million in improvements, including dropping one regular classroom, and fewer upgrades on the locker rooms and new vocational/agricultural building.

Also, the complaint alleges, flood plain requirements were not contemplated in the Eidos estimate. The school district reported that adjusting the elevation of new buildings to comply with updated FEMA flood plain rules cost an additional $200,000 to $400,000. 


Other additional costs alleged as a result of the disputed construction estimate include $125,000 in redesign fees, $25,000 in additional owner's representative fees, $125,000 for increased hard costs for the locker room improvements, $32,000 for asbestos removal in the locker rooms, and $1,500 for a flood plain study.

The school district is seeking compensation for its losses, an amount to be determined by a jury trial or settlement.


When asked if a settlement was possible, Nearman stated that "we tried to settle before, but the district wanted the moon. So settlement will be difficult."


jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com