LYNN — Superintendent of Schools Dr. Patrick Tutwiler is seeing a window of opportunity for school repairs and wants to open the door to further discussion.
The School Committee voted unanimously last Thursday to authorize Tutwiler to submit a statement of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority for an Accelerated Repair Project at Drewicz Elementary for windows and doors.
The city is seeking to replace the doors and windows at Drewicz due to their age and condition. Drewicz Elementary is 113 years old and the doors and windows were first installed in 1980.
“We are excited to proceed with this project,” Tutwiler said. “It’s probably well overdue.”
Following the School Committee’s authorization, the City Council is expected to do the same and authorize Tutwiler to submit the application at its meeting on Tuesday.
The project is expected to cost $1.8 million.
Michael Donovan, chief of the city’s Inspectional Services Department, said the windows and doors had not been replaced since 1980 and to call for a statement of interest was necessary to fix them.
“The doors lock fine but the windows are in poor shape,” Donovan said. “They are not all operable, some of the seals in the glass are broken; they are way past their time.”
Drewicz was one of ten schools that underwent ventilation construction funded by a portion of $18 million provided to the city from the Elementary and Secondary Education Emergency Relief II (ESSER II) Funds.
In 2006, Drewicz underwent a roof replacement project and this summer, Donovan said, there will be refurbishing of the school’s interior.
“It’s a routine thing,” Donovan said. “The building ages and it needs to be fixed.”
The Massachusetts School Building Authority, (MSBA) is a quasi-independent government authority that helps to fund capital improvement projects in the commonwealth’s public schools.
According to the MSBA, a superintendent can apply for replacement, renovation or modernization of certain school facility systems. These include roofs, windows, boilers and heating and ventilation systems.
There is no guarantee that the MSBA will approve the statement of interest.
