But don’t expect big expenditures
I was thinking dollar signs as the Board of Education held a virtual work session on Dec. 7. One of the first items on the agenda was a presentation by the architectural firm CS Arch. Did that mean new projects and new expenditures?
A few days later, I asked Walter Moran what was happening. He’s been responsible for the school district’s buildings and grounds for the last 18 years.
During that time, we’ve had four Building Condition Surveys. And so has every other school district in the state.
It’s a once every five year procedure that started in 2000 and is mandated by the State Education Department. In Cornwall, a team from CS Arch and the Chazen Companies (an engineering firm) visited our school buildings and rated each component. The top mark was “excellent”; next came “satisfactory,” and then “unsatisfactory” followed by two lower grades.
“Unsatisfactory” is not the equivalent of a failure in school. It indicates something will have to be repaired or replaced during the next five years. The information helps the school district prepare a five-year plan, which is submitted to the State Education Department.
Some of the projects will be handled by his staff. Others will qualify for state aid if they are completed by outside contractors. Mr. Moran said there were no surprises. He and his staff know the buildings well.
And they covered the same ground a few years ago when the district was proposing a bond that included new construction.
“It’s not like the sky is falling,” Mr. Moran told me. “And it’s not like the days when you walked around with a hammer and a hammer fixed everything.” He and his department have been busy. That’s nothing new. But the job has become more complex since the start of the pandemic.
Staff members clean and disinfect the buildings every day. Based on a recommendation from the governor, they have upgraded the air filters from MERV 8 to MERV 13, a higher rated filter that can trap smaller particles. The plan is to replace the filters every three months.
“Planning is our best tool,” Mr. Moran reiterated as we sat in the department’s classroom, separated by a transparent plastic shield. And when it comes to planning, the Building Condition Survey is an important component.
