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District presents 10‑year facilities maintenance plan; two 50‑year‑old pools may need $9–$12 million in repairs
Summary
Facilities leaders presented the district's 10‑year Long Term Facilities Maintenance (LTFM) plan and warned that repairs to two aging middle‑school pools could cost an estimated $9–$12 million, a cost the district said would require planning amid limited LTFM revenues.
The district's facilities team presented the annual 10‑year Long Term Facilities Maintenance (LTFM) plan on June 9 and discussed prioritization of deferred capital maintenance projects, funding constraints and an updated assessment of the district’s aging pools.
Chief Operations Officer Greg Cole and Director of Buildings and Grounds Ben Martinson summarized how LTFM works: state LTFM revenue is allocated approximately at $380 per pupil and may be used for deferred maintenance, accessibility improvements and health and safety projects (leased spaces are not eligible). Districts must submit a 10‑year facilities plan to the Minnesota Department of Education and update the plan each year.
Martinson outlined major allocation categories for the coming fiscal year, including mechanical systems, health and safety, site and grounds work (parking lots, asphalt), and professional services and salaries for facilities staff. The board packet included a school‑by‑school breakdown of projects; administrators noted those are placeholders and that unexpected building repairs can change timing and priorities.
Cole told the board that two middle‑school pools — at Anoka Middle School (Fred Moore campus) and North Dale Middle School — are roughly 50 years old and now face significant mechanical and structural issues. The district's most recent evaluations estimated earlier repair costs at $7–$8 million; updated assessments increased the combined repair estimate for the two pools to between $9 and $12 million. Cole said much of that work would be mechanical and structural — piping, tunnels, humidity control, pool heating/circulation and related infrastructure — rather than visible cosmetic changes.
Facility staff emphasized that a pool environment is corrosive to materials and electronics and that those systems have reached the end of their useful life. Cole said the district continues to examine options and that the cost is large relative to available LTFM funding, so the board’s input on priorities and potential creative solutions will be needed.
On dehumidification and HVAC projects, administrators said the district has invested in replacing unit ventilators and installing dehumidification systems (which remove humidity to make indoor spaces feel cooler but are not full air conditioning). They estimated that roughly 60% of district classroom square footage has received some dehumidification work and that classroom coverage should be close to fully completed within the next five years, depending on funding and project sequencing.
Board members asked for clarification of dehumidification versus air conditioning, project prioritization and how the district balances competing needs. Cole and Superintendent McIntyre noted the challenge of prioritizing across a large portfolio of deferred maintenance needs with limited state funding and recommended the board weigh priorities against the annual LTFM allocation and other capital options, including bonding, if the district chooses to pursue larger projects.
The facilities team said they will bring the plan back on June 24 for board approval as part of the FY27 LTFM submission to the Department of Education.
