District votes to delay classroom move

Union Street pupils are returning to school six days after their peers at Elm Hill and Park Street, and when they do most of the rooms will look pretty familiar.

http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008808260385 # # # # District votes to delay classroom move ¶ By Josh O'Gorman, Rutland Herald Staff Published: August 26, 2008¶ SPRINGFIELD — Union Street pupils are returning to school six days after their peers at Elm Hill and Park Street, and when they do most of the rooms will look pretty familiar. ¶ On Monday, the school district's building committee voted to delay relocating teachers and pupils into an addition to the school that according to construction documents is more than a month behind schedule. The district had already announced Union Street will open Sept. 2 — six days after every other school opens Aug. 27 — the only question was if those pupils would return to the old building or the new.¶ Monday's vote came after a site visit by the building committee led by Baybutt Construction's project manager Joe Moyer, who led a tour through the two-story project which at some points appeared nearly done, at other points a work-in-progress. ¶ Downstairs, construction workers wheeled cabinets through the hallway while electricians ran wire above the skeleton of the drop ceiling. Upstairs, the classrooms appeared far more complete, with ceiling and lights in place and the floors recently cleaned. ¶ "On average, we've had 60 to 80 people working here, and weekends, we've got 30 to 40 people," Moyer said. "It looks like a hurricane hit it now, but a week from now it will look a lot different." ¶ The budget for the work on Union Street School is $10.8 million and comes from a $32.8 million bond passed by Springfield voters in 2006. Contractually, the plans called for the addition to be complete by July 11 and to move classrooms from the existing wing of the building to the addition. The original wing of the building — which was constructed in 1951 — would then be renovated. ¶ On June 2, Dore & Whittier Architects notified the school board that Baybutt Construction would not meet substantial completion by July 11 and instead believed the job would be complete in October. Subsequent reports from Dore & Whittier stated the construction schedule had been accelerated at Union Street, and Monday's site visit by the building committee was to determine if classrooms could be moved from the old wing to the new. ¶ "There's still a lot of loose ends, but they've made a lot of progress," architect Lee Dore said during the site visit. "It's always a bit hectic right before the end." ¶ Following the visit, the building committee reconvened in the conference room at Hancor in North Springfield to decide where pupils would go to school next week. Three options were offered to the committee: They could call the job substantially complete and move into the new wing, call it ready for partial occupancy with a punch list of items which need to be complete or decide it was not ready for occupancy. ¶ "Whichever option gives those kids a chance to learn with minimal disruption is best," said Superintendent Dr. Frank S. Perotti. ¶ Building committee member Mark Blanchard expressed reluctance to move into the addition. ¶ "As a person in Springfield, I would feel nervous turning our kids loose in that space," Blanchard said. ¶ Instead of relocating classrooms prior to the opening of school — now delayed by six days — the building committee voted to keep pupils in the old wing of the school, as well as use four classrooms in two portable buildings located between the old wing and the new. ¶ On Monday, construction workers were finishing the handicapped-accessible ramps leading up to the portable classrooms, which are expected to remain on-site until February. ¶ Blanchard speculated it might take three weeks for Baybutt to substantially complete the punch list for the classrooms to be relocated. ¶ "Probably, had we decided two weeks ago to not even try to get the (certificate of occupancy for the addition) we could have opened on time," Perotti said. ¶ While the new wing does not have a certificate of occupancy, neither does the old one, which needs to have the ground outside the school's doors raised about 2 feet for safe egress as well as tested fire alarms. ¶