Mold removal

starts in

Washington,

Annex

Projects are

latest phase of multi-year mold removal plan

By KREMENA TODOROVA

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- Contractors started mold removal and reconstruction work at the District 88 administration annex building and limited areas of Washington Elementary School on Monday, Facilities Director Scott Hogen reports.

The work at the annex will involve removal, cleanup and reconstruction of the "interior walls of the exterior side" of the building; replacing ceilings; and removal and replacement of old carpeting.

At Washington School, the contractors will be removing pipe insulation in the crawl space, cleaning the pipes and replacing the pipe insulation.

The cost of this round of projects is estimated at about $300,000. The projects are expected to be completed in mid-January.

Some offices are being temporarily relocated to accommodate the work, reports Hogen. The superintendent and curriculum director moved late last week to the third floor of the Middle School, while other staffers remain at the annex but will be "jiggled" back and forth between offices on a space-available basis.

Officials suggested, and the school board decided, to complete the projects before the end of the current fiscal year, to make use of available state-regulated health and safety funds.

Following the ongoing round of the projects, yet another round will be started toward the end of the school year and continue into next summer, Hogen also said Monday.

The work at the annex and Washington follows similar work in classrooms, which had been given priority and completed over the past summer, to avoid disruptions to school activities that directly involve students.

During the summer, District 88 focused on mold and asbestos removal, cleanup and reconstruction in "student-inhabited" areas of the Washington and Jefferson Elementary Schools and the High School.

Mold and asbestos were removed from classrooms, locker rooms, band and mechanical rooms. Ceilings, sheetrock, pipes, pipe coverings and pipe insulation, and carpeting were removed and cleaned up and/or replaced.

As part of the effort to control mold growth, contractors also checked heating and ventilation systems, to determine whether they are operating at maximum capacity and adjust them accordingly.

Separate ventilation systems were installed in computer labs and media centers across the district. Ventilation systems had been linked to the building-wide systems. Because ventilation needs in labs are different from those in classrooms, the switch is expected to help prevent future mold growth.

The mold removal projects are the district's largest since construction and remodeling in 1997. During the summer, the school system spent about $50,000 on improving the efficiency of heating and ventilation systems; about $260,000 on mold and asbestos removal; $320,000 on reconstruction after the removal and cleanup; and about $280,000 on new ventilation systems at the computer labs.

The district is suing companies involved in the "problem" construction, in an effort to recoup some costs. The legal action is still in its early stage.

The mold cleanup resulted from a study unveiled in the fall of 2002 that discovered excessive mold growth in the buildings and deemed it a potential health hazard.

The study was triggered by mold complaints.