Facilities report: Pembroke schools note aging buildings, wastewater-treatment costs and parking-lot needs

Pembroke Public Schools’ business manager and facilities director presented a maintenance overview on March 25 that outlined aging building systems, capital needs and recurring operating costs across five district schools.

Why it matters: The district operates several facilities built or substantially renovated decades ago; deferred maintenance and aging mechanical systems can carry growing costs and service risks. The presentation identified projects that may require planned capital funding or changes in staffing and contracting.

Key details - Buildings and lifecycle: presenters described five school buildings with major renovations about 24–27 years old; many fixtures (toilets, faucets, fountains) are on similar replacement timelines. - Staffing and contracted services: the district employs 18 full-time custodians and a combination of day and night staff across schools; contracted services (repairs, HVAC, plumbing, electrical) account for a large portion of the facilities budget (presenters cited about $500,000 for contracted services annually). Utilities (heat, electricity, water) were listed at just over $1 million annually. - Wastewater-treatment plant: Pembroke Public Schools operates its own wastewater-treatment systems for some school properties; the district pays roughly $46,000 per year for chemicals, testing, reporting and associated contracts. Presenters said maintaining operator licensure is difficult and that the long-serving external operator the district has used is planning full retirement, increasing the likelihood the district will need to contract outside for operations. - Capital projects: near-term projects include HVAC replacements at elementary schools, gym roof work, continued flooring upgrades, and playground and PA-system replacements. The district has partial community preservation funds reserved for some softball/field improvements and for a scoreboard, but other work such as press-box replacement carries additional ADA and sprinkler-code cost requirements. - Parking lots and site work: presenters requested an engineering study to assess district parking lots, which show settlement and sinking in several locations; the district pays for parking-lot repairs on its property even where adjacent to town infrastructure.

Staffing and governance notes Presenters said the district currently manages facilities work through an administrative structure with responsibilities spread across the superintendent, business manager and building principals. They suggested the district consider a dedicated facilities manager or a shared facilities role with the town to improve long-range planning and project execution; prior attempts at sharing functions had mixed results.

Ending Committee members and administrators agreed to add parking-lot planning and wastewater operations to long-range planning work and to return with capital-cost estimates and staffing options during the FY26 budget process.