Archive: Around Town

As if needing new burners and a face lift on the old brick walls wasn't enough, the Middle School was flooded Saturday (8/20) evening when the water main broke inside the basement wall, filling the boiler and storage rooms with six feet of water. When that happened the power went out. That's the bad news.

The good news is that a Kimball, Inc. worker who was there to work on boiler pipe demolition was able to repair it by the next morning. By Tuesday the basement was drained and the power was turned back on.

Back on the bad news side, there was damage to items stored including paper products and archival records, other items such as a washer and dryer plus some electrical parts of the new boiler system. But on the good news side the new boilers themselves and most of their parts were stored outside the building.

If this had occurred a week later the damage may have been greater. Jim Slavetskas, the consultant who interfaces between the district and its varied contractors, reported that an inventory had already been sent to the insurance company and that the flood does not but the boiler project off its schedule. The State requires that the new system be largely in place by September 15.

Interim Business Administrator Gary Alger said that some archival records have been sent out to be restored. Mr. Slavetskas also reported that the boiler project is going well with demolition about 95% complete.

When asked whether he thought the Middle School is jinxed Mr. Alger replied, "The boiler, bricks and water supply were all past their life expectancy." That they are being repaired and replaced is good news.

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