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Emergency rental boiler installed at Ed Center; long-term HVAC options under study
Summary
After a heat-exchanger failure, the district installed a temporary rental boiler at the Education Center and is seeking design authorization (about $200,000) to plan a long-term heating solution; rental costs are about $3,200 per month and staff will evaluate reuse or rent-to-own options.
The Bethlehem Area School District installed a temporary rental boiler at its Education Center after a heat-exchanger failure during January’s deep freeze, and staff told the facilities committee they plan to authorize design work for a long-term heating solution.
A staff presenter described the emergency response: crews secured a contractor to provide a temporary rental boiler and are monitoring performance while troubleshooting existing systems. "This recommendation is to get us through what's been done with the rental, $45,000 worth," the staff member said, and added the monthly rental fee is about $3,200.
Committee members asked if buying the rented equipment outright would be cheaper. A committee member asked about a $200,000 figure staff identified for replacement design and asked whether that was the authorization before purchase. Staff said the authorization is to design the long-term solution rather than to buy equipment immediately; the design could include reusing the temporary rental equipment and explained that a full replacement of the obsolete HVAC system could cost north of $2 million.
Staff also noted that controls and ATC systems are obsolete and that life-expectancy questions will factor into any investment decisions. "We're keeping it on life support," the staff member said of the existing HVAC system, and added that the project team will consider redundancy and load sizing when recommending specific equipment.
The committee discussed modeling options, rent-to-own crediting of rental payments, and whether temporary equipment could be repurposed for future construction if the building were later demolished. Staff said those possibilities are part of the feasibility work and will be reflected in a future recommendation to the board.
