COAL TOWNSHIP - Contractors replacing the roof at Shamokin Area Elementary School will be working around the clock toward completing the project before the start of school in August.
Dave Petrovich, supervisor of buildings and grounds, said Monday that two crews would be working 20-hour days for the next month on the 86,000-square-foot roof - a nighttime crew tearing off the old material, a daytime crew installing the new material.
Equipment and materials were mobilized Monday at the site and hoisted onto the roof.
The district has set an Aug. 18 deadline for the roof work, whether it's completed or not. Any remaining work would have to be put off until the end of the 2012-13 school year, Bob Getchey, chairman of the school board's buildings and grounds committee, said during a meeting Monday.
Students return to school Aug. 28, allowing 10 days for any chemical smells to dissipate.
"We're just going to stop work altogether and take no chances," Petrovich told members of the district school board during a joint meeting of the buildings and grounds and athletics committees.
The roof replacement is one part of a elementary renovation project expected to top at least $3.5 million.
Budget Renovation and Roofing, Shamokin, were awarded a contract in June to replace the roof after submitting a low bid of $1,154,597. Other contractors on the project are Zartman Construction, Northumberland, general construction, $1,008,942; Master Mechanical Corp., McAdoo, mechanical construction, $277,276; Yannuzzi Inc., Hazleton, plumbing, $417,000; G.R. Noto, Clarks Summit, electrical, $68,000.
Quad 3 Group is project engineer at a cost of $418,000.
The previous school board voted last September to take a $4.068 million federal loan to pay for the renovations.
The renovations include cleaning and sanitizing existing duct work, replacing hot water heaters and water main and branch piping, replacing the master clock system and bathroom tile, replacing 10,000 square feet of carpet with vinyl tile, and paving and sidewalk replacement.
The elementary cafeteria is getting an overhaul as part of the project, complete with new kitchen equipment. Petrovich told committee members he expected the kitchen would not be completed by the start of school, and that a contingency plan exists for students to have cafeteria in the school gymnasium.
Interior renovations will be ongoing during the school year. Since there isn't enough room to shut down parts of the school and compartmentalize portions of the work, Petrovich recommended that contractors begin work after school, about 4 p.m., and work into the night.
He said all interior renovations could be completed by December 2012.
A soft total of the renovations is $3.5 million. Petrovich said that figure could rise with the approval of any change orders.
If any money is left over, he said it could be used to pave district roadways outside the project's scope.
In other business, Petrovich updated committee members on work undertaken by district employees since school let out in early June.
The employees dug a ditch at the baseball field and laid perforated pipe, ran that toward the nature trail and covered it in stone and soil. It will take some heavy rains before it's known whether or not the work will prevent water from backing up onto the field and the nearby football practice field.
A seal coating was applied to the blacktop around Kemp Memorial Stadium. Petrovich said 64,150 square feet of the coating was applied by brush. District employees were assisted by people performing court-ordered community service.
Since the work was performed in-house, Petrovich said the district saved an estimated $9,100.
The grounds crew has been focused on upgrades at the stadium, Petrovich said, replacing outdated wiring and electric panels in the ticket booths and concession stand. The booths were painted and shelves will be installed.
Lights behind the home bleachers were replaced, white siding was installed and eight steel doors replaced. A hole in the fence was fixed as well.
Roof overhangs were installed above the entrances to the home and away locker rooms and the doors painted.
Petrovich said 60 new lockers were fabricated by district personnel at the high school, replacing the old metal lockers on the home side.
Cost of materials for the new lockers, which are still being installed, is $3,800, he said, compared to an estimated $20,000 for materials and labor if the district contracted with a vendor for the work.
Electricity and water utilities were extended to the district's softball field for use at a concession stand.
The high school gymnasium floor was refinished, hallways in district buildings cleaned and waxed and 10 banners purchased as a gift by the Class of 2012 hung from lamp posts around campus.
Upgrades were also made at the elementary annex, including painting, tile work and sidewalk installation.