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Facilities report details projects and cost savings, including $100,000 elevator 'refresh'
Summary
At the June 8 meeting the Gardner School Committee heard a facilities update from Robert Schwartz outlining an elevator "refresh" that cost about $100,000 instead of a previously quoted $1 million, kitchen and grease-trap replacements, completed boiler-room and flood repairs, and upcoming MSBA roof work.
Robert Schwartz, reporting for the facilities subcommittee, told the Gardner School Committee on June 8 that the district found a lower-cost way to fix the high-school elevator: a targeted "refresh" that cost about $100,000 rather than the $1 million quoted for a full replacement. "It basically what that means is all worn out parts were actually replaced ... and that ended up to be a cost of $100,000 versus a million dollars," Schwartz said.
Schwartz outlined other capital needs and recent work. Kitchen wood replacement that had been planned for last summer was delayed when materials arrived late; that work is expected to be completed this coming summer. The district will replace two corroded cast-iron floor grease traps in a kitchen at an estimated cost of about $50,000. Audio and visual upgrades for the Landry auditorium remain incomplete after prior work and are on hold until new funding is available.
Schwartz said the district completed flood repairs to second-floor boys' and girls' bathrooms (approximately $50,000) and boiler-room repairs (about $30,000). He noted the middle-school roof replacement has MSBA approval and that contractors are scheduled to start on June 23. HVAC upgrades at the middle school are being value-engineered to reduce cost and adapt designs to available funding. A planned building generator replacement at the middle school remains delayed after fuel contamination and a required underground tank replacement; funding is still unresolved.
Schwartz also reported that two rooms formerly used by Gardiner Educational Television will be repurposed to house the Gault School program at the high school; renovations are required but the district will move the program despite pending funding for the fit-out.
Why it matters: the subcommittee’s report highlights short-term repairs already completed and several larger projects that require additional funding decisions. Several items—HVAC redesigns, auditorium AV completion and some renovations—are contingent on future appropriations or grants, which could affect timelines and operations in the coming school year.
Committee members raised no substantive questions during the presentation, and the meeting moved to finance and other agenda items.
