Series of facilities issues prompt repairs and staffing discussion at Wallingford operations committee

Mister Deptula, a district facilities staff member, briefed the Wallingford School District operations committee on Feb. 18 about a string of facilities issues and ongoing projects.

He said the ramp at the Transition Academy is complete and inspected, interior painting at Fairfield Boulevard is nearly finished, and Stevens’ boiler replacement is complete. He reported that the DAG automation project is nearing completion and that DAG’s elevator has been posted for bid. Air handlers are scheduled to be replaced.

On urgent repairs, Deptula said three frozen water lines burst under Lyman Hall during an extended cold spell and were repaired by district staff using in-house labor and a few fittings. He said a pool heat exchanger at Sheehan ruptured, that an attempted repair failed, and that a replacement is expected to take "at least 8 weeks, if not longer." He estimated a domestic-water heat-exchanger repair could be completed in about four weeks. He described a minor repair at Parker Farms that he expected would be "not more than a couple thousand dollars."

"We have 3 frozen water lines burst underneath Lyman Hall," Mister Deptula said. "...the pool heat exchanger, which is for the, our the domestic water heat exchanger, we're doing ourselves. We should have 4 weeks... it's out at least 8 weeks, if not longer."

The committee also discussed a Moran boiler outage that Deptula attributed to a late oil delivery that stirred up sediment in the tank, clogging filters and nozzles within about 12–16 hours and forcing the building to be unavailable. "We believe that the oil company delivered oil later than they should have," he said.

Superintendent Belizzi thanked Deptula’s crew for rapid response to multiple failures that occurred in quick succession and noted that marine boilers are bonded and scheduled for replacement this summer. Committee members and the superintendent repeatedly praised the facilities crew and said the incidents underscore the district’s need for a full‑time plumber; the chair said a budget request for that position is pending.

Members also asked whether insurance could cover vandalism costs for track repairs; Deptula replied that coverage depends on the dollar amount and noted the track is past its five‑year recoding cycle so external assistance is unlikely.

Next steps: Deptula will proceed with replacement ordering where needed (lead times were cited), the district will pursue bonded boiler replacements this summer, and the committee will continue to consider a full‑time plumber in upcoming budget discussions.