by Rachel Heitzenrater
rachelh@myweeklysentinel.com
CANTON — Canton Area School District board members voted to approve business manager Mark Jannone to enter a contract for a roofing project at their March meeting.
The contract with the company Tremco, though the Keystone Purchasing Network, which is a state approved cooperative purchasing group, includes roofing improvements with both the high school as well as the elementary.
Tremco representative Randy Kline spoke at the recent board meeting about the different options as well as his recommendation, which he presented to the board.
Because of the contract deadline, the board had to vote to approve the contract at this meeting, or face the possibility of losing the contractor and the lower pricing, according to Kline.
For a 15-year guarantee, Kline reported a total cost of $1,870,853.88. For 20 years, the total came to 2,295,932,46, of which Jannone recommended and also still came under the original budget proposed for this project.
Board member Tom Resavage expressed his concerns on the cost and asked about the cost of repairing just the seems on the roof.
Kline answered his question, noting that fixing seems on the roof was a possible alternative to the one he presented.
Jannone then explained that due to having ESSER funding, the cost would be lower for tax payers in the route he was proposing, noting that his goal was to save money down the road.
ESSER funding may be gone if the board chose to wait, which Jannone did not recommend because of the higher cost burden it would put on taxpayers.
Board member Bill Holland asked when the roofing was last completed. Jannone said the elementary was completed in 1998, and the high school was completed in 2002. He then asked if there was mold on either, to which Jannone replied no, but there are wet spots throughout, resulting in deterioration in the roof.
For the project, Jannone noted that 1.5 million of this project can be funded using ESSER funds, about $500,000 will come from the capital projects fund, and the rest can come from the fund balance (general funds), which currently has about 6 million in it.
Board member Denny Sourbeer asked if other schools who worked with Tremco were called, to which Jannone replied yes and they all had glowing recommendations for Tremco, those that worked with that company.
Board member Scott May asked about the priority of HVAC systems throughout the school and noted his concerns for raising prices for work materials, noting that his vote in favor of entering a contract was due to the rising costs of good and hopefully saving money.
Resavage made a motion to table the topic until the next board meeting in April. Holland seconded it. All board members voted against the motion except Resavage, Holland and Denny Sourbeer.
Denny Sourbeer noted that his concern was a tax increase on the taxpayers, but he was told by Jannone that this decision would not affect a tax increase, and ensured the board that a tax increase may not even be necessary unless Governor Wolf does not put out the proposed budget he has planned. He also reminded the board that after four years, they will be debt free.
“So what you’re saying is that it would be a bigger tax burden on the taxpayers if we don’t act now?” asked board member Arica Jennings. She was answered with a yes.
Ultimately, the board chose to move forward with the Tremco contract for a 20-year guarantee for $2,295,932.46. All board members voted in favor, except Resavage and Holland.
Work for the roofing project is set to begin in the planning stage in April, with work beginning in May and is planned to be completed in August. The roof will be cleaned before the project begins, as per the contract with Tremco.
rachelh@myweeklysentinel.com
CANTON — Canton Area School District board members voted to approve business manager Mark Jannone to enter a contract for a roofing project at their March meeting.
The contract with the company Tremco, though the Keystone Purchasing Network, which is a state approved cooperative purchasing group, includes roofing improvements with both the high school as well as the elementary.
Tremco representative Randy Kline spoke at the recent board meeting about the different options as well as his recommendation, which he presented to the board.
Because of the contract deadline, the board had to vote to approve the contract at this meeting, or face the possibility of losing the contractor and the lower pricing, according to Kline.
For a 15-year guarantee, Kline reported a total cost of $1,870,853.88. For 20 years, the total came to 2,295,932,46, of which Jannone recommended and also still came under the original budget proposed for this project.
Board member Tom Resavage expressed his concerns on the cost and asked about the cost of repairing just the seems on the roof.
Kline answered his question, noting that fixing seems on the roof was a possible alternative to the one he presented.
Jannone then explained that due to having ESSER funding, the cost would be lower for tax payers in the route he was proposing, noting that his goal was to save money down the road.
ESSER funding may be gone if the board chose to wait, which Jannone did not recommend because of the higher cost burden it would put on taxpayers.
Board member Bill Holland asked when the roofing was last completed. Jannone said the elementary was completed in 1998, and the high school was completed in 2002. He then asked if there was mold on either, to which Jannone replied no, but there are wet spots throughout, resulting in deterioration in the roof.
For the project, Jannone noted that 1.5 million of this project can be funded using ESSER funds, about $500,000 will come from the capital projects fund, and the rest can come from the fund balance (general funds), which currently has about 6 million in it.
Board member Denny Sourbeer asked if other schools who worked with Tremco were called, to which Jannone replied yes and they all had glowing recommendations for Tremco, those that worked with that company.
Board member Scott May asked about the priority of HVAC systems throughout the school and noted his concerns for raising prices for work materials, noting that his vote in favor of entering a contract was due to the rising costs of good and hopefully saving money.
Resavage made a motion to table the topic until the next board meeting in April. Holland seconded it. All board members voted against the motion except Resavage, Holland and Denny Sourbeer.
Denny Sourbeer noted that his concern was a tax increase on the taxpayers, but he was told by Jannone that this decision would not affect a tax increase, and ensured the board that a tax increase may not even be necessary unless Governor Wolf does not put out the proposed budget he has planned. He also reminded the board that after four years, they will be debt free.
“So what you’re saying is that it would be a bigger tax burden on the taxpayers if we don’t act now?” asked board member Arica Jennings. She was answered with a yes.
Ultimately, the board chose to move forward with the Tremco contract for a 20-year guarantee for $2,295,932.46. All board members voted in favor, except Resavage and Holland.
Work for the roofing project is set to begin in the planning stage in April, with work beginning in May and is planned to be completed in August. The roof will be cleaned before the project begins, as per the contract with Tremco.