Easton Area School District officials presented a Trane quote of $832,000 to replace the public library’s failed chiller and opened a sharp board debate over who should pay.

"That quote came in to do the work at $832,000 for the project," Buildings and Grounds presenter (speaker 7) told the board, noting the estimate includes engineering fees and carries a $33,000 credit if the current chiller is left in place. The proposal arrived through an OMNIA cooperative purchasing contract that would forgo a public bid, staff said.

Ken (speaker 11), who reviewed the OMNIA quote, warned the board that the turnkey cooperative contract does not include a project allowance for unforeseeable conditions and that asbestos abatement, permitting and other change‑order risks remain. "There will be some other additional expenses, ones related to asbestos abatement," Ken said, adding the district must scope insulation fittings to price abatement.

Board member Mike (speaker 9) pushed back on using district capital for a community library building the district owns. "Is there anybody besides me that thinks we should be thinking about something else instead of putting this money into this money pit?" he asked, saying he feared spending from district reserves would come at the expense of students.

Other board members and the superintendent said the district, as the building owner, must address the immediate equipment failure and that the administration is pursuing grant matches with the city and state representatives. "We have been working with the city, and the state representatives to see if we can secure some funding," the superintendent (speaker 3) said, calling the effort a multi‑layered approach and noting that the district contribution could serve as matching funds for a library grant.

Staff told the board the lead time for the new chiller is about 15 weeks and that going out to bid could delay installation past the cooling season. Staff also reported two likely internal funding sources large enough for the cost: the Palmer bond and the district’s capital reserve. Preliminary figures presented were about $4.4 million in the Palmer bond and roughly $5.9 million in capital reserve, staff said.

The board did not take a final vote on the chiller at the meeting. The presiding officer summarized that the administration will bring a finalized package to next week’s voting meeting, including the chiller quote, as staff continues to seek external grant support and cost details for abatement.

Next steps: the district will present the chiller procurement and funding options at the next voting meeting for formal board action.