Building Committee Meeting Minutes ~ January 7, 2025 - Unapproved

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Board of School Commissioners

Building Committee Meeting Minutes | January 7, 2025

 

Committee Members Present: Sara Atkins-Doenges, Chair Justine Franko Cathy Solsaa   Committee Members Not Present: Karen Bossi Stephanie Stoodley   Other Board Members Present: Marybeth Lennox-Levins Marisa Neary

Also Present: Bill Olsen, Superintendent Bianca McKeen, Assistant Superintendent  Tim Smith, Controller Pam Reed, Director of Equity & Inclusion Glenn Scott, Director of B,G&T

 

Call to Order

Chair Atkins-Doenges called the meeting to order at 5:03 pm.

 

Roll Call

Committee Members Present: Sara Atkins-Doenges and Justine Franko. Committee Members Not Present: Karen Bossi, Stephanie Stoodley. Other Board Members Present: Marybeth Lennox-Levins, Marisa Neary, Cathy Solsaa. Also present: Bill Olsen, Bianca McKeen, Pam Reed, Glenn Scott, Tim Smith

 

Approval of the Agenda

Motion made by Commissioner Franko, seconded by Commissioner Solsaa, to approve the agenda as written. Motion carried.

 

Public Input

No members of the public were present.

 

Agenda Items  

Glenn Scott, Director of Building, Grounds, and Transportation, provided updates for the committee as follows. The presentation document is attached.

 

High School Stormwater Bids

Construction is planned for 2025. The engineer's estimate of base work came in at $607,492 last year. The bid came in higher at $707,492 for the base work. Three local companies were interested, only one submitted a bid. Markowski Excavating’s total bid was $1.011 million, which includes a higher cost estimate in the case of contaminated soil. If no contamination is found, the project cost will be $707,492 for the base cost. The school district is responsible for 10% of direct or leveraged funds. $75,000 is budgeted for the project, and funds can be shifted to cover any extra cost. This project is managed by the State’s contractor, Green Print Partners. Contamination is highly unlikely, and should be known early on in the project. The design of the project includes renovating the front circle of the high school. The circle renovation should be out for bid around the end of March, and decisions will need to be made then depending on the cost.

 

Fuel Tank Inspections – Follow-up

Fuel tank inspections happened last month. A few minor issues were found at each school, and a slightly larger issue was found at Northeast school where there is a small amount of water (4-5 inches) in the tank and between the tank walls. This is likely caused by the fill tank being a little off-kilter, creating a leak at the top of the tank and allowing groundwater to enter the tank, which can be repaired in warmer weather. Tank replacement would be required if there is a leak in the tank, though this is unlikely given that the tank was replaced 18 years ago with an expected life of close to 30 years. The next step is to hire a company to perform a pressure test to ensure there is no leak in the tank. Total tank replacement costs were discussed (around $100,000), as well as potential funding sources. The water will be pumped out during the pressure test. At this point there is no concern of water reaching the boilers.

 

RHS Cafeteria Roof

Leaks were discovered during the recent heavy rains in the back section of the high school cafeteria roof where an addition was placed shortly after the construction of the school. Water has been entering the roof due to some unevenness between the two sections, contractor foot traffic from the recent air handler replacement, and multiple penetration points for HVAC systems. This repair has risen to the top of the list for replacement based on severity. The repair will also include new, upgraded insulation (required by code) which will increase energy efficiency. Mr. Scott recommended focusing on replacing this roof in FY25 and reallocating funds budgeted for the Northeast library roof, which is on the list as an age-related replacement, as well as some other minor projects, to cover the costs of this roof replacement. The cost will be around $130,000, which reflects the amount of labor involved with roofing around all of the equipment and penetration points. This will be a summer 2025 project. There was discussion around delaying repairs to the Northeast library roof, which is not in imminent need and will be shifted to FY26 or FY27.

 

Longfellow Roof

This roof is 1890’s slate and was not part of the facilities assessment. Slate has been found on the ground recently, signaling an issue. There is also a small leak above the rear hallway near the Tapestry offices. Vermont Roofing performed an assessment, and found 35-40 slates that are missing or need to be repaired, that water is getting in on both sides of the rear dormer causing the leak in the rear hallway, and the rubber around the chimney needs to be reattached. The estimate is around $14,000 and repairs will take about a week. They will check the entire roof when doing the repairs. It is expected that they will find more to repair as they are working, which will increase the cost. The underlayment and wood seems to be okay. This will be a summer 2025 project.

 

Next Meeting: The next Building Committee Meeting is scheduled for February 4, 2025 from 5:00 – 6:00 pm

 

Adjournment

Motion made by Commissioner Solsaa, seconded by Commissioner Franko, to adjourn the meeting at 5:41 pm. Motion carried.

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Bethany Sprague

Board Recording Secretary