Leaking pipe to lead to remediation work

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NAUGATUCK — A leaking pipe at the Early Childhood Center at Central Avenue won’t be such an easy fix.

Earlier this month, officials discovered a water pipe leaking in the basement of the school at 28 Central Ave. Controller Robert Butler said the leak could be contained but not easily fixed because the pipe is wrapped in asbestos. There is also asbestos in the plaster in the ceiling, he said.

The leak occurred in a small room in the basement that is not used regularly, and there is no risk to students, Butler said. The borough will have to remove the asbestos from the pipe and replace the plaster, he said.

Local and state inspectors were expected to review what remediation work is needed, and the project will then go out to bid. Butler expects the bids to come in between $250,000 and $500,000.

During the Board of Education’s meeting on April 20, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Christopher Montini said he wasn’t sure whether students, who attend the school year-round, would be displaced due to the work.

“We are hurrying to create a plan to be able to do the work this summer because displacing our little ones during the school year would be problematic,” Montini said.

Montini said if the work isn’t done over the summer, the students would have to be integrated into classrooms at other schools.

“We hope to avoid that by fixing whatever we’re able to fix during the summer,” Montini said.

Montini said officials should have more specific information on the work that needs to be done and what it will mean for the students within a few weeks.