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Tiverton council approves emergency chimney removal at high school using casino capital funds
Summary
Council approved emergency chimney-removal work at the high school after school officials described the structure as a safety hazard; other school capital requests (doors, sound system) were deferred to the January casino revenue meeting.
The Tiverton Town Council approved emergency removal of a deteriorating chimney at the high school, using unspent casino gaming capital funds, after staff described the condition as a major safety issue.
Councilors heard that the project had two bids with large cost differences and that the estimated cost had increased from an earlier $13,000 placeholder in the school five-year plan to approximately $65,000 in recently received quotes. A school-building representative noted that invoices will be submitted and the town should receive reimbursements through the casino-capital process.
Councilor discussion divided on whether to approve only the chimney immediately and wait to allocate funds for exterior door replacement and a $55,000 auditorium sound-system installation until the full casino-review meeting in January. One councilor said the chimney was a "major safety issue now," prompting the council to approve the chimney work without allocating the other two items at this meeting.
Councilors also noted that if bids exceed the allocated funds once the project goes to contract, any unused funds would return to the casino capital pot. The council approved the emergency chimney-removal motion; members agreed to bring the other school requests back to the January casino revenue meeting for prioritization.
Next steps: staff to finalize contract/bid documents and coordinate reimbursement procedures through the casino capital process; remaining school requests to be prioritized at the January casino meeting.
