Mars Building Addition

Berrien Springs Public Schools is requesting sealed bids for a 4,750 square foot addition to Mars Elementary School in Berrien Springs, Michigan, with bids due September 18, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. and a mandatory pre-bid meeting on September 3, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. at the Mars Elementary main entrance. The project is subject to Berrien County prevailing wage requirements.

The scope includes new educational spaces—integrated studies classrooms, resource rooms, speech pathology facilities, corridors, vestibules, storage, and toilet facilities—in a one-story Type II-B (Educational occupancy) structure approximately 22 feet in height. The construction comprises reinforced concrete masonry walls, steel joist roof framing with metal deck, concrete foundations and slabs-on-grade, and full mechanical, electrical, and plumbing infrastructure. Design parameters include 2,000 PSF soil bearing pressure, 3,500 PSI concrete compressive strength for interior slabs and 4,500 PSI for exterior structural concrete, and structural steel with Fy = 50,000 PSI. Special inspections per the 2021 Michigan Building Code Chapter 17 are required, including continuous masonry inspection and periodic concrete and steel verification.

Construction is scheduled to commence by October 12, 2026, with substantial completion by July 30, 2027, under a single prime contract in one phase. Each bid must include a five percent bid bond, a list of warranted projects completed within the last five years, a list of subcontractors, an Iran Economic Sanctions Act Certification, and a sworn and notarized Familial Disclosure Statement. The awarded contractor must provide Performance Bonds, Labor and Material Bonds, and certificates of Liability and Worker's Compensation Insurance with minimum coverage of $1 million General Liability per occurrence and $2 million aggregate. Bidders must demonstrate comparable experience with similar-scale projects. No bid may be withdrawn for thirty calendar days following bid opening. Bidding documents are available electronically at no charge via email to cadmin@carmi.biz or through plan rooms including the Builders Exchange of Kalamazoo and Lansing, Construction Association of Michigan, ConstructConnect, Dodge Construction Network, and MACIAF. The project architect is CARMI Design Group.