MIDDLEBURY — Addison Central School District officials are hoping for a great turnout at a Monday, Jan. 27, meeting at which they will explain a consultant’s findings that ACSD’s seven elementary schools need a combined $16.2 million in repairs.
The officials will also discuss how those repairs could figure into a facilities master plan that will guide construction priorities for the Middlebury-area schools over the next decade and beyond.
The meeting will run from 6 to 8 p.m. at Middlebury Union High School.
“ACSD Facilities Evaluation Report,” prepared by Burlington-based TruexCullins, was recently completed. It involved an analysis of buildings-and-grounds repair needs for the district-member elementary schools in Bridport, Cornwall, Middlebury, Ripton, Salisbury, Shoreham and Weybridge. A similar review of Middlebury Union middle and high schools is under way, with those results to be shared later this year.
All of this information will help inform the ACSD’s “facilities master plan,” to serve as the board’s guide in prioritizing capital investments in all of its buildings. The ACSD board has already announced the prospect of school mergers, in light of limited resources and declining enrollment throughout the district.
What follows is a synopsis repairs TruexCollins had identified for each of the seven Elementary Schools. The full report can be found at tinyurl.com/sldu6nl.
•  Bridport Central School. A total of $2,272,363 in needed work, with the biggest categories being electrical and fire protection ($528,951), interior work ($483,695), and structural improvements. The consultant’s recommendations include repaving and restriping the parking lot, patching cracks in the masonry foundation, replacing ceiling tiles throughout the building, replacing fluorescent lighting fixtures with LED, and removing/replacing all electrical wiring.
Bridport Central has approximately 17,600 square feet of space, was built in 1955 and equipped with an addition in 1987. It currently serves around 65 students.
•  Cornwall’s Bingham Memorial School needs $2,012,514 in work, including $104,509 for structural upgrades, $136,856 for exterior repairs, $336,394 for interior construction, and $329,358 in the areas of electrical and fire protection, according to TruexCollins. Specific recommendations include updating the fire alarm system, replacing fluorescent lighting with LED, replacing ceiling tiles and windows, and ceiling cracks with the building structure.
The Bingham School was built in 1959, has 13,500 square feet, and now serves around 82 students.
•  Mary Hogan Elementary School. The district’s biggest elementary school (by far) could use $7,064,286 in upgrades, with the biggest categories being electrical/fire protection ($1,449,409), mechanical and plumbing ($754,156), interior ($753,528), exterior ($749,828), and $722,576 in repaving. Specific recommendations include repairing or replacing rotting wood shingles, replacing the original (B wing) roof, replacing all flooring in the A, B and C wings, and replacing fluorescent lighting with LED.
Mary Hogan was built in  1954 and equipped with additions in 1966, 1984 and 2001. It has around 72,000 square feet and currently services around 442 students.
•  Ripton Elementary is one of the district’s newer schools, having been built in 1989. The building is approximately 14, 900 square feet and serves 51 students.
It needs an estimated $1,115,794 in work, including $383,808 fire protection/electrical work, $189,028 in interior repairs, and $67,725 in accessibility updates, according to TruexCollins. Specific recommendations include replacing all floors with “resilient sheet” ($135,155), removing unit ventilators and replace with heat recovery ventilators ($114,327), and replacing the fluorescent lighting fixtures and controls with new LED ($186,421).
•  Salisbury Community School was built in 1996, and serves around 86 students. It has 24,550 square feet of space.
It needs $1,584,209 in repairs, according to TruexCollins, including $434,000 in electrical/fire protection work, $213,523 in mechanical-plumbing updates, and $471,227 in interior renovations. Specific recommendations include replacing flooring throughout the building ($287,277), replacing door hinges throughout the structure ($100,541), and replacing the fluorescent lighting fixtures and controls with new LED ($396,245).
•  Shoreham Elementary School was built in 1954 and currently serves 91 students. The 14,864-square-foot structure was equipped with an addition and new roof in 2001.
The building needs $1,813,871 in repairs, according to TruexCollins, including $128,813 for mechanical and plumbing work, $575,129 in interior renovations, and $397,455 in site work — including repaving the parking area. Specific recommendations include replacing fluorescent light fixtures ($239,910), replacing ceiling tiles ($73,976), and updating kitchen with new equipment, work surfaces ands storage ($87,427).
•  Weybridge Elementary School was built in 1961, with additions introduced in 1966 and 1996. It has around 15,300 square feet and currently serves 52 students.
The school needs $1,546,724 in repairs, including $349,212 in interior renovations, $99,000 in structural work, $254,721 in mechanical and plumbing work, and $336,957 in electrical/fire protection updates.
Specific recommendations include replacing HVAC system ($102,895), replace heat recovery ventilators ($112,982), replacing carpet/flooring $179,036), and repairing crack, potholes and faded striping in the parking area ($47,076).
Reporter John Flowers is at [email protected].