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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-09-30 School Committee MinutesReading Public Schools Reading, Massachusetts Regular Session September 30, 2003 CALL TO ORDER Chair Dahl called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. in the Superintendent's Conference Room. Present were School Committee Members Carpenter, Dahl, McFadden, Russo, Spadafora and Webb and Student Representative Laura Nelson. Also present was Superintendent Schettini. Chair Dahl thanked the Veterans for attending the meeting this evening to give input on the proposed Veteran's Memorial at the high school. CITIZENS INPUT Andrew Herlihy, Commissioner of the Reading Municipal Light Department asked the School Committee to use the expertise of the RMLD staff to help make the new Reading Memorial High School one of the most energy efficient in the state. Mr. Herlihy stated that RMLD was flush with cash. Mr. McFadden thanked Mr. Herlihy and Mr. Cameron for their proactive approach on the high school project. Chair Dahl asked Mr. Herlihy if there had been any further discussion on the discount rate for the schools. Mr. Herlihy stated that the RMLD was still looking at that option. Mr. Spadafora asked if the Committee could utilize RMLD for the new school and the Barrows renovation also. Mr. Herlihy stated that they would assist with all schools. Superintendent Schettini stated that he had met with Vinnie Cameron of the light department yesterday along with the architects for the high school and the elementary school architects to discuss this issue. Mr. Carpenter stated that as part of the energy conservation initiative he would like RMLD to review grant opportunities and provide this information to the school department. Chair Dahl thanked Mr. Herlihy for attending tonight's meeting. Regular Session 2 September 30, 2003 SUPERINTENDENUCHAIR REPORT Chair Dahl advised that the Selectmen closed the warrant for Town Meeting last week, and the two articles sponsored by the School Committee were included in the warrant. Keith Hoffses and Bob Bell of Design Partnership discussed the options for design of the Veterans' memorial at the high school and the different material options. After discussion regarding the proposed options, the veterans' group agreed to return to the School Committee within one to two weeks with their recommendation for the memorial. The veterans also stressed their desire to have the plaques already present at the high school incorporated into the new memorial in some way. Keith Hoffses distributed information regarding the educational specifications and the changes made from the state submission level. He provided the following information in response to questions raised by the Committee at the last meeting. A 750 square foot classroom could accommodate 30 students. A curb cut will be made for the drama area which would allow direct access. The issue of band space versus media center can be eliminated with a ceiling disconnect. Mr. Spadafora asked if the band room off the main entry would create a noise issue in the entry. Mr. Hoffses described the soundproofing in place and stated he was confident there would not be an issue. Mr. Hoffses described the additional storage found for the drama department. Ms. Webb stated that RISE is an excellent program and asked whether they have enough space in the renovation. Superintendent Schettini stated that they will have sufficient space. Mr. Carpenter thanked Mr. Hoffses for his efforts in addressing the issues brought forward by the Committee at the last meeting. Mr. McFadden asked the Director of Athletics and Student Activities, Mr. Vaccaro, if the plan met the needs of the band. Both Mr. Vaccaro and Principal Orlando indicated that Mr. Bunten had met several times with the architect to review the band space and Mr. Bunten is satisfied with the band space. Regular Session 3 September 30, 2003 Mr. Hoffses stated that a possible location for a partnership with a college would be on the 3rd level near the computer labs. Mr. Hoffses stated that Design Partnership is recommending the School Committee allow them to review the baseball, softball and tennis court work with an eye toward reducing the amount of work there and perhaps be able to incorporate a press box and bleachers that will be handicap accessible and structurally sound. Mr. Hoffses stated that there is no solution that will accommodate all of the varsity sport needs in the current footprint of the building. Mr. McFadden asked Mr. Vaccaro and Mr. Feudo to speak to the issue of the loss of the second gym at the high school. Mr. Vaccaro stated that the fieldhouse is adequate to support the physical education and health program but not the varsity sports. He stated that Reading has 26 varsity teams and 68% of Reading students participate in a sports program. He stated that Reading will not have another gym where junior varsity can play and spectators can watch. He discussed areas where it would be possible to add a second gym. The first area would be above the locker room and the second area would be an addition to the current fieldhouse. Mr. McFadden asked what the alternatives for gymnastics may be if the fieldhouse can't accommodate the program. Mr. Vaccaro stated there were two options, we could rent a gymnastics facility for two hours per day or we could install plates into floor of a middle or elementary school to secure bars. Mr. Feudo from Reading Recreation agreed with Mr. Vaccaro's concerns over the lack of a second gym. He discussed the Reading Recreation programs including the travel basketball program and the camp programs which generate revenue for Recreation. Mr. Hoffses stated that a second gym would not be reimbursable by SBA. Mr. Carpenter suggested the fieldhouse include the necessary structural elements to add a gym over the locker room if the cost was not prohibitive. He discussed including the gym as an add alternate Mr. Hoffses stated that this would be a complicated add alternate. Regular Session 4 September 30, 2003 Mr. Russo stated that he is advocating a slower approach to the building project as other groups many come forward with other ideas and concerns. Chair Dahl stated that this is the program presented to Town Meeting and to the voters, and delaying the project will cost the town more money. He stated that community members could bring forward ideas to the School Committee and the Committee will consider the ideas if they are within the constraints of the budget. Mr. McFadden asked for the estimated cost per parking space. Mr. Hoffses stated that the cost per parking space is approximately $1,000. Mr. Vaccaro stated that it was not his intent to stop or delay the project. He stated that he was only asking the Committee to consider if there was left over money perhaps from the tennis courts or softball field to consider partially funding a second gym. He stated he would be willing to go to the community to try to raise additional funds. Mrs. Phillips suggested that the new elementary school and the Barrows gym size could be decreased and money transferred to the high school for the second gym. She stated that the School Committee needs to be cognizant that we are not on the reimbursement list. Chair Dahl thanked Mrs. Phillips for her comments. Mr. Russo asked if more borings were done on the high school site. Mr. Hoffses stated that they were and agreed to send the results to Mr. Russo. Mr. Russo asked how much of the work at RMHS is renovation and how much is new. Mr. Hoffses advised that 156,724 square feet is renovation and 137,903 square feet is new for a total of 294,627 square feet. Mr. Russo asked if air quality measurements had been done. Mr. Hoffses stated that background measurements are used to monitor quality during construction. Mr. Russo asked if the new high school would have civil defense capability. Mr. Hoffses stated that there would be an emergency generator of appropriate capacity and would run on diesel. Regular Session 5 September 30, 2003 Mr. Spadafora stated his desire to build in space to accommodate a growing technology staff. Mr. Hoffses said he would need to look at rearranging some smaller spaces to accommodate that request. Mr. Brown suggested that the generator run on natural gas. Mr. Hoffses stated that determination of gas or diesel is usually made by the local community. Mr. Spadafora questioned why there was a small group room for the science department. Mr. Hoffses stated that the science department staff had reviewed and approved the number of classrooms and that the small group room allows the science department flexibility. Mr. Spadafora asked what areas were piped for air conditioning. Mr. Hoffses stated that the auditorium, administration and nurse offices, all hardwired computer labs, library and guidance were all air conditioned. He stated that the Committee should review whether any other pipes should be upsized to the univents so in the future they could carry chilled water. Ms. Webb asked that the architect look at having the student restrooms just outside the cafeteria for supervision reasons. Mr. Hoffses stated that they would look into the matter. Mr. Carpenter asked if all teachers had work spaces not in the classrooms. Mr. Hoffses stated that they were able to accommodate all departments except one and that he was working with the administration on this matter. Ms. Mandell stated that the Committee should consider moving RISE to the elementary schools. Mr. McFadden stated that the Superintendent would be checking with Flansburgh to find out why RISE is not reimbursable when we were told that it was. Superintendent Schettini stated that RISE is actually a part of the high school curriculum for some students. Regular Session 6 September 30, 2003 Chair Dahl stated that it would be difficult to break up the program between five schools and not have the appropriate faculty and equipment in one location. Mr. Carpenter stated that the architect should ensure that the least number of bearing walls are in the RISE area in case in the future the Committee decides to move the program. Mr. McFadden asked Mr. Orlando and Mr. Porter if they have any concerns regarding the proj ect. Both Mr. Orlando and Mr. Porter stated that they were pleased with the project and the architect's response to input from staff. Mr. Spadafora moved to accept the room layout of the new RMHS contingent on the budget as set forth and as presented by architect Design Partnership of Cambridge to the Reading School Committee on September 30, 2003 with the following modifications• Possibility of adding a second gym as an add alternate, possibility of RISE alternatives and addressing the office layout as directed by the Administration. Mr. McFadden seconded the motion. The vote was 5 -1 Mr. Carpenter, Mr. Dahl, Mr. McFadden, Mr. Spadafora and Ms. Webb voted yes. Mr. Russo voted no. Mr. Russo stated that he believed the project should be delayed a month or two until people have finished presenting their ideas. Mr. Carpenter stated that there are costs associated with waiting and the more that is discussed the more we want to add. Mr. Spadafora stated that the financial experts agreed that now is the best time to bid the project because of the sluggish economy. Ms. Mandell asked if conservation issues could affect the design. Mr. Hoffses stated that they did not have significant concerns with conservation. He stated that they have been in front of the design review team which includes conservation. Ms. Mandell asked if an order of conditions had been filed. Mr. Hoffses advised that the order of conditions had not been filed. Regular Session 7 September 30, 2003 Mrs. Phillips asked if the Committee had voted to go into the design and development portion of the architect contract. Superintendent Schettini stated that at this point the vote of the School Committee is to proceed along to get to the final development stage. He stated Mrs. Phillips should contact him if she had further questions. CHART OF RESPONSIBILITY The Committee discussed the chart showing the proposed divisions of decision making authority. Mr. Dunlap of AD stated that this division of decision making authority is similar to ones in other towns. Mr. Spadafora moved to accept the assignment of decision making for the Reading Public Schools construction projects as stated in the Superintendent's memorandum on this topic dated September 25, 2003. Mr. Russo seconded the motion The vote was 6 -0 Mr. Carpenter, Mr. Dahl, Mr. McFadden, Mr. Russo, Mr. Spadafora and Ms. Webb. AJOURN At 10:55 p.m. Mr. Spadafora moved to adjourn. Mr. McFadden seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Mr. Carpenter, Mr. Dahl, Mr. McFadden, Mr. Russo, Mr. Spadafora and Ms. Webb. Superintendent of Schools