The NYC School Construction Authority opened two big Brooklyn exterior jobs 90 minutes apart on Wednesday, June 10, both in Community School District 21 in Brooklyn, both flood elimination plus the full envelope. Together the apparent low bids come to $53,884,777.

First up at 10:11 a.m.: solicitation 26-23266D at P.S. 177 The Marlboro, 346 Avenue P. Scope is flood elimination, roofs, parapets, windows and exterior masonry. Seventeen bids. AKM Construction Services Corp. was low at $24,000,777. CVM Construction Corp was second at $24,880,000, $879,223 back, or 3.7%. VENUS GROUP, INC. was third at $25,310,000. KEL-TECH CONSTRUCTION, INC. was high at $36,600,000. Spread: 52.5%. Median: $28,944,000. It's on our board as RFI-000397.

Then at 11:41 a.m.: solicitation 26-23271D at P.S. 226 Alfred De B. Mason, 6006 23rd Avenue. Same five scopes. Thirteen bids. NEHAL CONTRACTING, INC. was low at $29,884,000. Adam's European Contracting Inc. was second at $31,088,000, a $1,204,000 gap, or 4.0%. J & N Construction Group Corp. was third at $31,915,000, then Army Construction, LLC at $34,096,200, KEL-TECH CONSTRUCTION, INC. at $36,600,000, VENUS GROUP, INC. at $36,880,000, Roma Scaffolding, Inc. at $37,144,000, KG Construction Services, Inc. at $37,910,000, P & K CONTRACTING, INC. at $38,450,000, Whitestone Construction Corp. at $38,461,000, ANSU CONSTRUCTION, INC. at $38,500,000 and NORTHEAST RESTORATION CORP. at $38,792,000. PADILLA CONSTRUCTION SERVICES, INC. was high at $43,286,000. Spread: 44.8%. Median: $37,144,000. Board listing: RFI-000401.

Nine firms bid both jobs the same morning. Here's a detail worth a smile: KEL-TECH CONSTRUCTION, INC. put in exactly $36,600,000 on each. On P.S. 177 that was the high bid. On P.S. 226, a bigger job, it was fifth of 13. Same number, two very different finishes. Adam's European Contracting Inc. was fourth on one and second on the other; VENUS GROUP, INC. third and sixth.

Why flood elimination on both? The SCA's February 2025 capital plan amendment calls water infiltration "the single greatest cause of accelerated deterioration" of its buildings and carried $750.5 million for flood elimination. The City Council's review of the February 2026 amendment puts that line at $591.8 million, inside $2.75 billion for exteriors. Neither tab came with a published engineer's estimate. Apparent low is not an award on either job.

Why this matters. Two jobs, same district, same day, same scope list. If you're a waterproofing, masonry or roofing sub, that's two shots at nearly $54 million of low-bid work in a few blocks of south Brooklyn, with two different GCs holding the numbers.

What to do next. Price to AKM Construction Services Corp. on P.S. 177 and NEHAL CONTRACTING, INC. on P.S. 226, and keep CVM Construction Corp and Adam's European Contracting Inc. in the loop until the SCA posts award. If you can staff both jobs at once, say so. A GC holding two neighboring schools wants subs who can.

Update, Sept. 28, 2026: The SCA's bid tabulations now mark both apparent lows as awarded: AKM Construction Services Corp. on 26-23266D and NEHAL CONTRACTING, INC. on 26-23271D. Milad Contracting Corp. is the named electrical subcontractor on both. P.S. 177 names Forsythe Plumbing & Heating Corporation and EON Mechanical Inc.; P.S. 226 names Franco Belli Plumbing & Heating & Sons, Inc. and GRAND MECHANICAL CORP.