Replacement of the high school portico, resurfacing of the Amsterdam tennis courts and installation of the Woods Road Elementary School downspouts are the only projects left.
By: Donna Lukiw
Throughout the summer, construction and maintenance workers were at the schools completing the summer projects but three facility projects are still works in progress.
During Monday’s Board of Education meeting, board member David Lin said the replacement of the high school portico, resurfacing of the Amsterdam tennis courts and installation of the Woods Road Elementary School downspouts are the only projects left.
"It has been a really busy summer for the facilities committee, business administrator and the administrators but all projects are almost complete," Mr. Lin said.
Business Administrator Tom Venanzi said while the original plan was to only resurface the tennis courts, the district’s architect suggested expanding the project to increase the life-span of the tennis courts.
"After the budget was approved in April and our architect was given the go ahead to develop the plans and specifications for the project, it was discovered that a simple resurfacing was not going to be a long-term solution since we had several sub base issues below the surface that required attention," Mr. Venanzi said.
Originally, resurfacing the tennis courts was expected to cost $55,000 but the extra work drove the cost up to $141,000.
"We had to replace the base so the scope of work was significantly increased and that’s why the price came in so much higher when we went out for bids," Mr. Venanzi said.
Mr. Lin said although there was more work to be done and the cost is higher, it was a wise investment for the school district.
"If we just resurfaced the tennis courts they would’ve lasted two years," Mr. Lin said.
Mr. Venanzi said the tennis courts now are missing only the nets which are scheduled to be installed and completed this week.
Another major project for the district replacing the Woods Road Elementary School roof is complete except for the last-minute installations of down spouts.
The planned HVAC project at the high school is almost ready to go but the district is still waiting for minor electrical work to be completed.
"We have entered into a service with Energy for America to monitor our system to control and identify problem areas for us," Mr. Venanzi said. "This project will result in improved comfort in the building and guaranteed savings on energy costs and not only pay for the service, but also generate more savings beyond the cost."
Refurbishing the high school main entrance portico is also under way.
"The portico just needs some speakers installed and another coat of paint and that should be done shortly," Mr. Venanzi said.
Mr. Venanzi said during the summer, the high school track was resurfaced, carpets replaced with less dust-producing vinyl flooring in several of the classrooms at Sunnymead, Triangle and Hillsborough Elementary schools and the driveway at Triangle Elementary School repaved.