The second phase of the school district's roof replacement project is scheduled to be completed this summer as the district prepares to go out to bid for the work to replace roofs at six elementary schools.
The work to replace the roofs at Lyman Hall and Sheehan high schools has to be done in two phases because of the amount of work required, according to Supt. of Schools Dr. Salvatore Menzo.
"Half of it was done last summer and the rest will be done this summer," he said. Both Dag Hammarskjold Middle School and James H. Moran Middle School were completed last summer, he said, as well as E.C. Stevens Elementary School.
The remaining six elementary schools — Cook Hill, Highland, Beach, Parker Farms, Pond Hill and Rock Hill — will be done this summer. Yalesville Elementary School, the newest of the elementary schools, isn't part of the project because it is too new, Menzo said.
The work that will be done this summer involves a hot tar application, he said, and because of that the staff that would normally be working in the buildings during that time will be moved to other buildings that aren't affected by the work or are already completed.
All of the work is scheduled to be completed by the second week of August, Menzo said, but school will start later than usual to be sure there's no conflict.
"We will be going back to school the week after Labor Day," he said. "That gives us the gift of time in case there are any problems."
Once finished, the new roofs should be good for the next two decades, the superintendent said.
The district is preparing to go out to bid for the work on the elementary schools, he said. The company that started the work last summer on the high schools will continue it this summer, he said.
And once the work is done, they will be looking towards replacing boilers as part of upgrading energy efficiency in the schools, Menzo said. A recent upgrading of lighting and the heating and cooling systems has saved money, he said, and they're hopeful that upgrading the boilers also will be financially beneficial.
They're also actively pursuing bringing natural gas to the school buildings, which also would save money by eliminating the need to purchase oil, he said.
"We have had meetings with Yankee Gas and are pursing the potential of bringing the lines closer to the buildings," he said, "but that will be a multi-year process."
