Preparing for Two Summer Roof Projects

It may only be January, but Cliff Gurnham, director of facilities for Guilford public schools, is already thinking about summer.

That's because he needs to plan today what can be accomplished this summer during a very short "window of opportunity" as

he likes to call it for school

renovations.

As he outlined to the Board of Selectmen at its recent meeting, he is looking at two summertime school roof projects: one for the Dr. Elisabeth Adams Middle School and one for the Guilford Lakes School. Both projects he hopes to have completed this summer.

"Adams is already bonded and includes a partial replacement of four different sections of roof," he explained.

What Gurnham needs to

accomplish prior to construction is to file paperwork known as ED049 with the state so the town can receive its share of reimbursement on the projects. In the past, the town has received a 31 percent reimbursement rate.

In order to comply with state rules, the town must assign a committee to oversee the projects. At their meeting, the selectmen

approved that the Standing Building Committee (SBC),

already in place per the town

charter, be designated as the

state's committee for the projects.

The SBC was established by Special Town Meeting in 1986. Its seven regular members and two alternate members are appointed by the BOS. They are charged with overseeing projects that concern school buildings or town buildings. Current members include Doug Baldwin (chairman), Gregory Broderick, Robert Guadagno, Scott Orenstein, Scott Pickney, and David Skelton, and alternates Richard Bloom and Joseph Travaglino. There is one vacancy for a regular member.

Recent summer school roof projects include work on the A.W. Cox Elementary School last year and work in the summer of 2008 on the Adams School (the 1937 section) and at the high school.