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Facilities committee debates five‑year capital plan; board presses to accelerate high‑school elevator work
Summary
The facilities committee reviewed a draft five‑year capital plan focusing on 2026–27 projects (roofs, auditorium HVAC, fencing, playgrounds). A recurring board concern centered on replacing a nonconforming high‑school elevator, with members urging the board to move the project earlier and administrators outlining expensive and logistically complex options.
The Colonial SD facilities and transportation committee reviewed its draft five‑year capital plan on March 2 and spent an extended portion of the meeting on the high‑school elevator and other district infrastructure priorities.
Facilities staff asked board members to focus attention on the 2026–27 year of the plan, saying the document is live and projects can be reprioritized. Major 2026–27 proposals included completing a roofing project at Plymouth‑White Marsh High School that has been bid and awarded, replacing a failing auditorium HVAC unit, auditorium finish work and sound panels, and a roughly $60,000 reinforcement for damaged fencing at Colonial Middle School after vandalism exposed a two‑story drop.
A lengthy exchange focused on the high‑school elevator, which board members and staff described as operational but grandfathered and too small for some modern motorized wheelchairs and equipment. One board member pressed to move the elevator replacement forward from later years in the plan into 2027–28, calling the existing shaft non‑code compliant and citing student access problems that have required staff to provide workarounds.
Facilities staff described multiple technically feasible but costly options — enlarging the existing shaft requires moving adjacent restrooms and critical technology rooms, and exterior alternatives raise grading and site‑work challenges. Administrators estimated an ‘‘all‑in’’ cost in the range of roughly $1.4 million for some options and warned that estimates are one to two years old and that relocation of a technology/MDF hub could add substantially to cost and schedule. Staff said the project would likely be an 8–10 month construction effort if pursued.
Joe Bi, who led the facilities presentation, said the plan is meant to prioritize needs first and balance that against budgets: "This is just a draft and to really kind of just focus on the year 26‑27," he told the committee. Board members requested a site visit and a detailed cost and impact briefing that lays out which options are infeasible and the full "all‑in" cost so the full board can weigh tradeoffs.
Committee members also reviewed other districtwide needs — HVAC/unit ventilator replacements, permanent bollards to secure event parking, speed humps and crosswalk safety near Flowertown Road — and asked staff to provide photos and additional materials for review before the board votes on capital allocations.
Next steps: staff will prepare a focused briefing with visuals and a full breakdown of cost estimates and schedule options for the elevator and major 2026–27 projects so the board can consider reprioritization at a future meeting.
