School committee approves $425,000 for design work on Grafton Middle School roof after operations update highlights districtwide repairs

The Grafton School Committee voted unanimously Sept. 30 to support a town meeting article transferring $425,000 from free cash to pay for design services to replace the roof at Grafton Middle School.

The vote followed a longer operations update from district operations staff Frank and Shauna, who told the committee the district oversees custodial services, maintenance, transportation, food services and capital projects and that crews completed a broad slate of summer work. Frank said the Garland report commissioned by the town shows active leaks at all six school buildings and described the middle school roof as the most compromised.

"We have active leaks in all six of our school buildings," Frank said during the presentation, and he described the middle school roofing system as made up of "a series of four different roof materials" with a foam layer that contractors told staff is an uncommon and problematic choice for a New England commercial roof. He said the original…