Schools

Fawn Hollow Roof Tops Laundry List of School Maintenance Needs

Supt. of Schools James Agostine has identified numerous safety issues posed by maintenance needs throughout the district.

Supt. of Schools James Agostine toured all of Monroe's school facilities and identified numerous conditions in need of emergency repairs including broken glass, curbing and drainage issues, and a softball field at Masuk High School that's "virtually impossible to play on."

"There are a lot of emergency repairs we have to get through quickly," Agostine told Board of Education members at their Monday night meeting. "I'd like to scour our accounts" to address these needs as soon as possible.

But the big ticket item is replacing the roof at Fawn Hollow Elementary School, 345 Fan Hill Road, according to a report The Fisher Group LLC prepared for the district. The cost is estimated to be $1,580,000.

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"I don't know how solid that number is and would like to get a construction manager's estimate — then plan," Agostine said.

Agostine wants to get requests for proposals after a construction manager looks at the roof and hopefully get the roof replacement project underway by the summer of 2013.

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Gabriela DiBlasi, finance director for Monroe Public Schools, said state reimbursement in the 30-35 percent range is possible.

Mark Antinozzi, a board member, pointed out that Fawn Hollow's roof is "the low man on the totempole" in CIFAP's (the Capital Infrastructure Facility Asset Planning Sub-Committee) list of priorities among the town's capital needs. "How do we bring it up?" he asked.

"I think the report can do that and get it up to an emergency repair," Agostine said.

The Report's Findings

The Fisher Group had a site visit on Jan. 5 and completed the study on Jan. 13. The original section of Fawn Hollow is 46-years-old and an addition was built in 1989, "which is remarkable for any type of flat roof construction," according to the report.

The Fisher Group identified numerous deficiencies, including membrane blistering and ridging, splits/ruptures in the ply felts, deteriorated wall, curb and penetration flashings.

"The custodial staff has acknowledged that water leakage occurs in isolated building sections," the report said. "This is no surprise considering the various deficiencies present in the roofing construction."

One problem area is leakage over the gymnasium.

A part in the Summary of Conclusions that stood out to Agostine was where it said the roof is "at the end of its anticipated life service" and that roofing replacement should be planned within this calendar year.

Fisher recommends an EPDM roofing system with a 20-year-warranty, which would comply with the requirements of the Connecticut State Energy Conservation Construction Code.

Agostine said there are problem areas that were patched and re-patched and that the roof's condition continues to deteriorate. If nothing is done, he said problem areas will continue to leak.

One Board of Education member asked if there was any mold.

"There are some active leaks. No mold," Agostine said. "We're very lucky with that."


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