Section 24. Application of article to mental hygiene construction

The
  provisions of this article shall not apply to the department  of  mental
  hygiene   or   to   mental  hygiene  facilities  constructed,  acquired,
  reconstructed, rehabilitated or improved  pursuant  to  the  health  and
  mental  hygiene facilities improvement act, or to contracts entered into
  by the trustees of the health and mental hygiene facilities  improvement
  corporation  or by the state housing finance agency in relation thereto,
  or to real property held in the name of  the  state  for  the  corporate
  purposes of such corporation, except that the provisions of this article
  shall apply, so far as practicable, to such mental hygiene facilities or
  real property as are constructed, acquired, reconstructed, rehabilitated
  or  improved  by the commissioner of general services under an agreement
  made with the trustees of  the  health  and  mental  hygiene  facilities
  improvement   corporation;   and  except  further  that  nothing  herein
  contained shall be deemed to affect  the  power  of  the  department  of
  mental  hygiene  or  the  trustees  of  the  health  and  mental hygiene
  facilities improvement corporation to enter into any short form contract
  in accordance with section twenty of this  chapter  for  minor  work  of
  construction,  reconstruction,  alteration,  or  repair  of  any  mental
  hygiene facility  being  used  by  the  said  department  or  under  the
  jurisdiction of the said trustees.