Colonial SD reports roofing-bid wins and outlines inclement-weather procedures
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Summary
At the Jan. 12 facilities meeting, operations staff said Phase 2 roofing bids totaled $2,472,729 (about $177,000 below projection) and gave a detailed refresher on snow-response staffing, equipment, and the decision-making chain used for closures, delays and early dismissals.
Operations director Joe Lolly told the facility management and transportation committee on Jan. 12 that Phase 2 of the districtwide roofing project returned bids below the district projection and that the district is prepared for a pending winter storm.
Lolly said Mun Roofing won the bid to replace the D wing roof at Plymouth White Marsh High School for $840,000 and Jotun Roofing won the bid for Plymouth Elementary School (excluding recent additions) for $1,632,729, yielding a combined bid total of $2,472,729. He said the district had projected about $2.65 million for Phase 2 and that architectural fees will be deducted from the savings. Lolly described this report as an update, saying the board had previously approved the overall project.
The operations presentation shifted to inclement-weather readiness in light of a forecasted wind and snow event. Lolly described routine preparedness steps (an October custodial supervisors meeting to start equipment and parts checks), daily communication among operations staff and the superintendent, and the district's early-morning site drives. He emphasized that the district's policy is to avoid closing for reasons within district control: "We do not cancel school because we are not ready; school gets canceled because state or township roads are not ready and can't clear bus stops," he said.
Staff outlined the command-and-control rhythm for closures and delays: an early text/communication chain among superintendent and operations leads, site drives by district leaders, consultation with municipal police chiefs or representatives and the county 911 center, and a superintendent decision aimed to be made by roughly 5:30 a.m. For 2-hour delays, Lolly said maintenance staff are reassigned to shovel duty to assist custodial teams. Transportation staff reviewed a three-tier dismissal schedule (high school, then middle, then elementary) and noted long run times for non-public routes that shape early-dismissal timing.
Board members asked whether a township or state-declared emergency automatically triggers closure; staff said the district has never opened when a township had declared an emergency and that personnel carrying district IDs may be allowed through closures for essential work. A board member asked about the budget impact of snow events; staff said costs vary by storm characteristics (drifting, temperature effects on de-icers) and that the district budgets a modest annual amount and averages overtime across years rather than per event.
The committee closed after brief questions and a welcome of a new committee chair.
No formal motion or vote on the roofing bids was recorded in the committee minutes provided; the item was presented as an informational update.