Project Management, Construction Management, & Project Controls Archives - Page 8 of 12

Sarah Oaks—A True Team Leader

True leaders do not reach the pinnacle of success by stepping on the backs of others, but rather by recognizing the contributions of those that surround and support them. Projects, particularly in design and construction, are completed through the skills and talents of teams. Sarah Oaks, operations manager for DAY CPM, not only recognizes this herself but works tirelessly to make sure others see that success comes from the efforts of many.

While she may seem the perfect fit for her role as operations manager, Sarah did not arrive here directly. “I graduated at the peak of the recession with a degree in architecture, jobs were hard to find,” she said. Driven by her positive experience doing community service while in college, she started to look at AmeriCorps and discovered an opportunity through that organization with Portland Public Schools. She initially worked on sustainability research and bond planning efforts but was soon able to get a taste of project management work when Marysville K-8 suffered a fire and required a partial rebuild. While her architecture education was more focused on design, and the outward appearance of buildings, she found project management offered more opportunities to creatively influence the what and why behind them and advocate for the end-user. Being able to work on projects that were cornerstones of the community and impacted so many families also resonated deeply with Sarah and ignited a passion for stakeholder engagement and communications.

With that experience under her belt, Sarah joined DAY CPM as a project manager. For one of her first projects, Sarah was a leading member of the team that worked on the Tigard-Tualatin school bond that passed in 2016. In that role she worked with District leadership, coordinated project teams, developed standards for consistent project execution, and led the creation of the stakeholder engagement plan. She credits her success in this role in large part to strong alignment with the client’s needs up front and establishing trust with them through proactive communication, strong representation of their interests, and consistent delivery. Sarah was also challenged by her first leadership role managing a large project management team. “It was a steep learning curve navigating how to respond to the needs of each person and balance my own responsibilities at the same time. I appreciate the patience and grace my team extended to me–that experience was formative and taught me a lot,” she said.

Last spring, Sarah met with Henry Alaman, senior vice president, who joined the company around the same time she returned from maternity leave. “He made an effort to talk to everyone about key priorities they wanted to see him focus on and narrowed in on three that were most critical for staff. In that first conversation, we found a lot of common themes and potential focus areas but one near and dear to my heart was that we lacked a formal mentorship program,” she said.

As the company was rapidly growing it had become more challenging to see who was doing what, what was being accomplished, and who needed help. Over the past year, a concerted effort was made to build a mentorship program by identifying mentors, determining the structure, and convincing staff of the benefits to them personally and to the company. The mentorship program officially launched in November 2020. “It’s been incredible to give more visibility to what people are doing on their projects and find out what else they want to learn. We’re able to provide recognition for folks who were flying under the radar,” she said.

With her great strides both internally and externally for DAY CPM, Sarah was promoted to operations manager. She was honored by the promotion and recognizes that she is in a somewhat unique position. “Right now, there are not a lot of other women at my level in the construction industry. It’s very important that it’s not just me occupying this space and taking it for granted. I want to make sure I don’t stay up here alone.” With that in mind, Sarah works hard to give visibility and opportunity to all employees, and ensuring title, salaries, and opportunities are steeped in merit. She’s pleased with the willingness of DAY CPM to self-examine where they succeed and where there’s room for growth.

Sarah’s work has not gone unnoticed. This past fall she was recognized by the Daily Journal of Commerce (DJC) as a 2020 Phenom under their Phenoms & Icons Award. While honored to receive the award, she’s quick to point out that she did not rise to where she is without a lot of support.

DAY CPM Oversees Expansive Bond for Tigard-Tualatin School District

The Tigard-Tualatin School District passed a $291M bond in the fall of 2016 and turned to DAY CPM to oversee the bond program, putting together the teams that would lead the extensive effort needed to rebuild, renovate and construct schools for the 12,700 students in the district.

Joshua Dodson was tapped for Bond Program Oversight and is assisted by a bond Program Manager Debbie Pearson and a team of DAY CPM project managers, as is needed due to the long-term schedule of the bond. Work began in 2016 and is scheduled to be fully complete by the fall of 2023.

The overall project includes rebuilding three of the district’s oldest schools—Templeton ES, Twality MS, and the oldest portions of Tigard HS. In addition, classrooms are being added to Tigard and Tualatin HS and Durham Education Center, particularly to add areas for STEM curriculums. A new elementary school, Art Rutkin ES is being constructed, overall safety and security of the schools is being enhanced, and scheduled facility repairs are being completed such as new roofs and HVAC upgrades. Finally, new technology, textbooks, and a digital curriculum are being purchased to ensure the schools meet current and future technological demands.

Joshua said a highlight of the work at Tigard High School, and an example of the flexible spaces that schools are embracing, is the creation of learning steps, both inside and outside, that mimic auditorium or theater seats and can hold about 500 students to sit or stand for events or for lunch, or just to do homework or socialize. “It’s a really large space. On one end of it, you can get from the ground floor up to the second story and students are looking out towards the wide-open space that holds the cafeteria. The space can be used for so many different things.” Joshua said.

DAY CPM worked with three major design firms, Bassetti Architects, Bora Architects, and IBI Group for the major builds and smaller design firms DECA Architecture and Oh Planning + Design, for more of the renovation work. Construction firms Triplett Wellman Construction, and P&C Construction have been responsible for most of the construction put in place. Small works construction firms Inline Commercial Construction, Fortis Construction, Benchmark Contracting, and Portland Road and Driveway Company round out the list of const

ruction partners.

With such a large group of partners, communication is essential which is where Joshua’s leadership comes in. He has more than 22 years of experience working on K12 bond programs, and particularly bond management. In his role overseeing the bond work, he makes sure the teams are functioning well and that the clients are happy with the work. “I make sure we are managing well to set the bond up for success. I was boots on the ground for many years on school projects so I’m able to assess and see quickly where adjustments need to be made and I can provide advice and support for the teams,” he said.

To date, $252M of work has been delivered on time and on budget with the new build of Rutkin Elementary School slated to be the final piece of the bond project.

DAY CPM Leads Central Point School District Bond Program

With a primary goal of providing students a safe and healthy school environment, DAY CPM has been acting on behalf of the Central Point School District, overseeing the management of a $90M bond program that includes numerous school upgrades and renovations throughout the district. Central Point School District (CPSD) #6 operates schools in the Southern Oregon communities of Central Point, Gold Hill, and Sams Valley, with eight schools serving more than 4,700 students including five elementary schools, two middle schools, and a high school complex located at the Crater campus. With the passage of the bond in May of 2019, the district turned to DAY CPM to oversee the bond management as its owner’s representative.

The bond money is meant to accomplish a wide variety of goals. Buildings needed to have their mechanical systems updated and improved for better efficiency and to better protect the health and safety of the occupants. Additional flexible learning space was needed to allow different types of classes, from science labs to study halls—crucial components to allow for future changes and developments in course structure. Finally, more space was needed to reduce overcrowding.

Photo Credit: Molly Bermea – Frizz Studio

DAY CPM recognized that a program this large in scope would require a large, dynamic team with multi-disciplinary skills, and would require boots on the ground in Central Point. The challenge was they did not already have a person on the ground in that part of the state. As happens when this is the case, they scanned their existing contacts to find someone they could trust to lead the work. Medford architect and Southern Oregon resident Steve Ennis was hired by DAY CPM to be the local senior project manager for the duration of the bond program. Project manager Tina Ely supported the CPSD Bond remotely with assistance from project managers Joshua Dodson and Randy Isaac. Additional DAY CPM assistance is being delivered by our local project coordinator Matt Robinson and engineering specialist Les Carmichael.

Joshua Dodson explained that DAY CPM has an advantage as an owner’s representative because the company houses project managers, architects, engineers, designers, and other skilled professionals thereby bringing a strong knowledge of what is possible and what it takes to move a project of this magnitude and complexity along. “This background makes us experts. We’re not the architects or contractor on this project but we know how they should be contracted so the owner’s objectives are fulfilled,” Joshua said.

That knowledge base is critical as more than half of the bond work is dedicated to mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) upgrades at the eight schools, which can be more challenging than new building upgrades. As Joshua states, “MEP work is not as flashy so, in some ways, it is also a harder sell to the public who can’t necessarily see the improvements.” In the end, though, the users of the schools will experience the benefits of these critical upgrades on a daily basis.

DAY CPM worked with the district, design team (BBT Architects of Bend) and construction managers/general contractors (S&B James Construction and Vitus Construction) to develop a schedule for the more than twenty projects to ensure the work can be completed by the fall of 2023.

The arrival of the pandemic last year and recent fires has proven to be both detrimental and beneficial to the overall work. On the one hand, schools have been closed which has allowed work to occur inside the buildings throughout the school year when otherwise it would have been consolidated into the summer months. The downside is that some materials are more difficult to come by and shipment times are increased. Altogether, the pluses and minuses have offset each other, the project has remained on schedule, the teams of architects and contractors are in place and construction has begun.

DAY CPM will continue to act as the fiscal stewards of the bond, meshing the budget, project scope, and timelines to make sure the public money is spent wisely, within rules, and to the best benefit for the students, staff, and communities the schools serve.

“Our goal ultimately is to serve the children and make sure they are taught in good facilities where their learning isn’t hampered by outdated or dilapidated buildings,” Joshua said.

DAY CPM Creates Community Pride With Seaside School Project

Schools are places where face-to-face communication is essential to foster an environment where students feel safe and comfortable to ask questions and open up to learning. With this atmosphere, there is little wonder that those who work in school districts also support and expect more personal relationships and direct contacts. For this reason, DAY CPM has thrived as the owners’ representative for a spate of recent school projects, recognizing that successful relationships build successful projects.

This was certainly the case for DAY CPM’s work with Seaside School District in Seaside, Oregon. The community supported a $99M bond for the project but had not supported a bond since the 1970s, so ensuring the community’s wishes were heard and met was paramount to success. DAY CPM brought extensive experience of working with schools and bonds to the table making them a perfect choice for the job. “It was important for us to help folks out given the challenges of a school district that didn’t have construction or bond experience. This is the largest and most expensive project in Seaside. The community voted for it and we wanted them to be proud of it,” said Jim Henry, senior project manager. Jim was the liaison between the district, CMGC Hoffman Construction, the design team from BRIC Architects, and a host of city service providers.

Seaside School bond passed in order to move the schools above the tsunami zone for both student safety and to serve as a community safe haven. The existing middle and high schools were replaced with a single building to house both. Pacific Ridge elementary school was renovated and expanded, along with seismic upgrades, allowing it to become the combined home of Seaside Heights and Gearhart elementary schools. Weyerhaeuser provided an 80-acre parcel for the new high and middle school.

The new HS/MS is a modern building, in many ways similar to what’s found on college campuses with advanced technologies and amenities better suited for teaching and learning. A key point for the construction and design team was to ensure everyone would feel part of the school; signage is bilingual, flexible learning spaces serve as teaching spaces and as areas designated for students to congregate during breaks in the school day. The highlighted feature of the new HS/MS is a view of the coast which was factored into the design, so both classrooms and common spaces show off the coastal landscape.

As with any project, there were challenges. The increased size of the school necessitated the construction of a City of Seaside reservoir to compensate for increased water usage and fire protection. The architects and City designed a route for the water services to run through the construction site to the reservoir. The property needed for this had to be annexed into the City of Seaside’s Urban Growth Boundary and the wetlands on site had to be addressed. DAY CPM relied on its prior experience with wetlands mitigation to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Oregon Division of State Lands Cooperative to find a solution to replacing permitted wetlands losses and enhancing what remained.

Construction began in the spring of 2017 and is slated for completion in February 2021. During that time, the schools have become a source of pride. Seaside is a multi-generational community and most residents had attended the schools which date back to 1955. They understood the buildings had reached the end of their life span and needed to transition to the 21st century. What they will have going forward is not just modern schools and community focal point, but a sense of hope for upcoming generations.

Coffee Creek Correctional Facility

Prior to forming DAY CPM, Mike Day provided CM/GC and complete construction administration services for this 1,684-bed, medium security women’s prison in Wilsonville, Oregon. The 425,000 square foot facility also houses the State of Oregon’s DMV call center. Site development of nearly 116 acres required extensive road infrastructure improvements, utility upgrades and a new water treatment facility for the City of Wilsonville. The women’s prison includes state-of-the-art computer security and system controls, a medical treatment center, inmate rehabilitation facilities, and a full-service commercial kitchen.

Salem Police Department

In May of 2017, a $79 million bond was passed to build a new facility to house the Salem Police Department. Otak CPM provided owner’s Representation services during design and construction of the new Salem Police facility and its adjacent parking zones. The 104,000 SF facility is built to current seismic requirements and features three stories, public and secure staff parking, and street frontage improvements. The new facility houses multiple police agencies in one location, improving efficiency and service to the community and allowing the department to grow.

Trios Health Southridge Medical Center

The comprehensive oversight and management of all facets of this expansion project led to the renovation and addition to Trios Health’s Kennewick Public Health Campus. The campus incorporated a new greenfield 74-bed replacement hospital which included the development of a 40-acre site and includes 175,000 SF of acute care facilities.

Complete Program Management to Expand and Renovate a Public Health Campus

The center offers diagnostic imaging, a retail pharmacy, laboratory, physical therapy, a medical infusion center, and other ambulatory services. Office space for support services to the hospital was included along with a coffee shop and central registration area. The Otak owner’s representative team involvement covered site development, land use development, permit and plan review, medical equipment and IT technology integration oversight, and overall program management services. In addition to the hospital, the team continued providing services for the Trios Health Southridge Care Center (MOB) that is connected to the campus’s Southridge Hospital and commissioned primarily for outpatient services and medical staff offices. The structure features seven floors of physician practices, outpatient services including physical therapy, a pharmacy, advanced diagnostic imaging, and infusion therapy.

Lake Oswego Library

Originally built in the 1980’s, the Lake Oswego Library was in need of renovations. On average, 900 visitors walk through the doors of the library each day and with Otak owner’s representative support on this project, these renovations encouraged more circulation within an improved facility.

Managing Renovations for a More Sustainable and Efficient Community Building

In bringing an updated version of this City landmark to the community, updates would be made to the Library’s main floor, lobby and staff workroom. The building underwent upgrades to update the functionality and ease of use of facilities for patrons and staff. The team coordinated and managed the renovations to all three departments within the staff workroom, storage space and the repairs to the concrete floors throughout the building, delivering a more sustainable and efficient building to the Lake Oswego community.

Oregon State Police Headquarters

In centralizing their operations, the Oregon State Police (OSP) aimed to consolidate all three Salem facilities into a single location, the Trelstad site. The Main Building at 80,000 SF, 2-stories high houses the OSP, the State Fire Marshal, and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. A 24,000 SF facility holds the fleet facility, procurement and IT; it is accompanied by a small warehouse that is primarily utilized by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Coordinating A Seamless Facilities Transition for First Responders

The Otak owner’s representative team’s duties included assuring all phases of the move out/in were coordinated and had little impact on agency operations. We coordinated all aspects of the various move components and the project activities with the contractor, developer, vendors, moving companies, utilities, DAS, and other agencies were scheduled and carried out in the most efficient manner. The extensive knowledge and experience our team brought to this project was essential to meeting the needs of these departments, so that they can serve the community to their fullest potential.

Northwest Specialty Clinic

Northwest Specialty Clinic, a privately owned and operated facility, is located at the north end of the RiverBend campus. The five-story medical office building houses a full-service ambulatory surgical center, imaging center, in-house labs and five floors of private specialty care offices. The facility is linked to the hospital and the RiverBend Pavilion medical office building via two overhead, fully conditioned sky bridges.

Otak CPM provided a full array of owner representative services including program administration and oversight, budget, schedule and construction management, land use and building permitting oversight, and medical equipment procurement coordination.