Brighton School Board Hires Auch as Bond Construction Manager

This week the George W. Auch Company will begin going over the design and other issues with Brighton Area Schools' $88.4 million bond project.

The Pontiac company got the OK last week to oversee construction of the bond.
At a little more than $3 million, the company's bid fell in the middle of the other two firms being considered.

The process was somewhat controversial, taking three different votes before awarding Auch the contract because of Trustee Bill Trombley's employment with Granger Construction. If Granger was awarded the contract, legally, Trombley would have to abstain from voting on matters pertaining to the company Also, the board must have at least five votes to approve any apsect of the bond issue, according to state law.

"Choosing Granger will leave Mr. Trombley out of a lot of discussion," Board Secretary Beth Minert said. "He shouldn't have to resign - he was voted in to this position by the people for his expertise. It puts us in a delicate condition for years. It's not fair to him and it's not fair to us."

Trustee John Conely cast the lone dissenting vote against Auch.

Superintendent Greg Gray recommended Auch to the board above the other two companies because it received the highest rating from board members during the interview process. Also, the company has an 18 year work history with the district.

The board previously approved SHW Group as the bond project architect and the .

Gray said construction will not get underway until the fall.