Mold remediation project delayed in Andover Elementary School

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Mold remediation project delayed in Andover B. Snow - Chronicle Staff Writer

ANDOVER — Plans to test the air in Andover Elementary School for airborne mold before as well as after a project designed to combat the problem is undertaken may delay the start of the project until August. The project, which calls for a dirt crawlspace beneath the school to be drained, lined with cement and outfitted with a ventilation system to create “negative pressure” in the tunnels to prevent air from being drawn up into the school, had originally been slated to start earlier this month. In April, the board of finance approved the release of $47,607 from the school improvement fund to pay for the project, which will be performed by Montford Construction of South Windsor. The project delay is the result of concerns raised by the board of education’s air quality subcommittee and parents of children who attend the school. Olah, Superintendent of Schools and principal at Andover Elementary, said in an interview Tuesday that the work would be an extension of the $3.6 million renovation project begun in 2000 and completed in 2001. The renovation project has not been “closed” yet — when the state reimburses the town for the renovation, the reimbursement will include the mold abatement work, Olah said.