School board forms building committee for roof project

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REGION 16 — The Region 16 Board of Education last week approved the formation of a building committee for a roof project at Woodland Regional High School.

In the fall of 2013, school officials discovered that the pitched roofs with shingles were in disrepair and leaking in spots. A roof analysis report stated the leaks and deterioration appear to be related to one or more installation errors, such as roofing nails being visible between slots of shingles, or nails that are rusted and loose, allowing water to enter.

The roof over the art wing was in the worst shape and has been fixed. Temporary repairs were also done to other parts of the roof.

Officials decided to hold off on the bulk of the work until the district, which oversees schools in Beacon Falls and Prospect, became eligible for some state reimbursement on the project. The school opened in 2001 and districts aren’t eligible for reimbursement on replacing roofs until they are 15 years old.

Over the past few years, voters in the district have approved transfers from school budget surpluses to the board’s non-recurring capital account. Most of the money was set aside for the roof work. Superintendent of Schools Michael Yamin said the account currently has $660,000 in it.

The formation of a building committee is necessary in order to apply for state reimbursement. Yamin said the committee will have to hire an architect and draw up plans to submit to the state. He said it’s currently unknown what level of reimbursement the district may receive.

The state will have to approve the plans and the funds to reimburse the project, which means the work will likely be done in the summer of 2018, Yamin said.

1 COMMENT

  1. Oh my goodness! This must be hard for the school and all the kids attending there! It’s too bad the district can’t go after the previous roofing contractor who obviously made ridiculous errors, there is no way that roof should be leaking and in this disrepair in less than 15 years. I’m guessing the previous roofer is out of business?