Mold messing up opening of Upton school

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Mold messing up opening of Upton school By Mark Berger / News Staff Writer Sunday, July 20, 2003

UPTON -- Plans on getting Memorial Elementary School up and running by the end of this year are proceeding, but mold may mess up the schedule. Initial tests came back positive for one type of mold in 10 of 12 samples taken from various parts of the project recently. School Building Committee Chairwoman Kathy Perregaux said the mold is not considered toxic and the committee is already looking for a solution. "The mold is considered an irritant," she said. "We're forming an organized plan to knock out the walls one by one to find out if the walls are clean or dirty." Mold was found about four weeks ago after a rainstorm soaked the $17.8 million school construction project. The new school is scheduled to open by mid-December. Memorial Elementary students will be bused to neighboring Grafton for the first part of the school year beginning in August. How the removal process happens is up for debate. Fellow committee member Lunny said the plan to eliminate all remaining mold should be to attack infected walls now before the Memorial Elementary School project gets too far along. That way, it would prevent future problems and save money in the long run, he said. Perregaux and Lunny argued that point Thursday night during their building committee meeting. Perregaux said the mold grew from a combination of wet weather, windows not being installed and the roof not being sealed. "We don't have a clear understanding if the walls are clean or not," Perregaux said. "The problem could have been solved by drying out. There may be other areas that need to be remediated." Lunny, however, said pictures of the molded walls he took on his own showed the problem must be addressed now and may be more serious than first thought. "If we wait to do more mold testing, the more the building gets finished and the more problems we will have," said Lunny. "It concerns me greatly that the taxpayers are paying for a $17.8 million building and it has mold in it." Perregaux said once the issue is clearer, contractor Joe Stella, of P.J. Stella Construction Group, will remove the mold. "I think Joe is trying to cooperate," she said. "I don't think he's giving us the run-around." Lunny disagreed, saying Stella Construction has not stepped up to remove the mold. "The (general contractor) wasn't going to do anything about the mold," he said. "They weren't taking the mold (issue) very seriously. The sheet rock wasn't damp from the rain, it was drenched. You could poke your fingers through it." Joe Stella could not be reached for comment Friday. Lunny said he hopes another round of tests will be performed sometime soon to see whether additional steps must be taken. Stella's actions throughout the project has one member irate. lashed out at Stella's firm, saying he has not lived up to the promises in the contract. "When is he going to show up (to a meeting)?" he asked. "I wish we could fire him. If any of us performed like he does, then we'd be gone. He has to be (held) accountable." The news comes as the regional school district is set to sign a five-month lease to use 6,000 square feet of space on the second floor of the Municipal Center building in Grafton. The cost of the lease is $30,000, according to Grafton Town Administrator Russ Connor. "The Board of Selectmen signed the lease at their meeting last Tuesday," said Connor. "I understand the superintendent ( Daigle) is on vacation and will be here Monday to sign the lease." The center will house first- and second-grade students. Additional space is also being rented out in the Superintendent's Office Annex for kindergarten students. The move to Grafton will help the contractor finish the project by mid-December. Connor said it was a pleasure doing business with the school district. "It was an opportunity to provide a service to a fellow municipality and we're happy to do that and we'll get a financial return," he said. "This is the first time we have leased to another municipality. We've lent the space to a local community college for courses. Grafton Intermediate School fourth- and fifth-grade students were housed in the building." Daigle said last week that items have been moved from Upton to Grafton. Construction crews were busy getting the school in shape. Among the projects that are scheduled to take place at the site include scraping ledge from the front of the building, hanging plastic and removing asbestos, said Perregaux. The new $17.8 million, 93,000-square-foot building will house new classrooms, ball fields for baseball and soccer, separate access roads for buses and vehicles. It will replace the 17,000-square-foot facility overlooking Rte. 140. (Mark Berger can be reached at 508-634-7556 or e-mail at mberger@....)