Palm Beach County School District lags on improving school air

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District lags on improving school air

By Ellen Flannery, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Friday, July 5, 2002

Even while students and teachers complain of mildew and mold, the Palm Beach

County School District is lagging in its efforts to repair faulty

air-conditioning systems.

School board members originally expected the district to replace two major

air-conditioning systems a year, school board member ette Burdick said.

But last year, only H.L. was done. This year, one more is under way.

And next year, another one will be done, while two more will be put off an

additional year for financial reasons.

The money to pay for the replacements at Christa McAuliffe Middle School in

Boynton Beach and Calusa Elementary in Delray Beach isn't available until

the 2003-04 fiscal year, according to information provided to the board.

Meanwhile, the district's environmental inspectors were called to Christa

McAuliffe six times during the past school year to look at eight classrooms,

a portable and an office, according to district records.

Students and teachers had complained that classroom conditions aggravated

their allergies or asthma. Even though inspectors detected musty odors,

which suggests mildew in the carpet, they did not find serious problems such

as mold.

At Calusa, inspectors visited just once. In November, an art teacher

reported mold growing on her classroom walls, and inspectors found the

room's humidity got up to 79 percent at night. It should be less than 60

percent. But inspectors also found that the teacher kept the room too cold,

which allowed condensation to collect, Skerlec said.

" We have placed auditoriums and stadiums at a higher priority than air

quality -- that's a problem, " Burdick said, referring to the district's

practice of paying for those facilities at every new high school. " Our

budgets should put health and safety at the top. "

But the classroom systems " definitely are a priority, " it's just a timing

issue, said Joe , the district's facilities director.

" I think Mrs. Burdick would like us to start construction at the same time

that the designs are done. That's just not possible, " he said.

Air quality in Palm Beach County classrooms has been an issue for years,

particularly in the nearly two dozen schools designed by W.R. Frizzell of

Hobe Sound.

In 1996, the district sued Frizzell, claiming its poorly designed

air-conditioning system was causing respiratory illnesses. But Frizzell

filed for bankruptcy and the district settled for just $450,000.

The Frizzell units " just weren't meant for a hot, humid climate like South

Florida, " said Skerlec, the district's environmental control officer.

In the units' most striking failure, two teachers at Banyan Creek Elementary

were hospitalized in 1999 with a form of Legionnaire's disease after mold

had grown up their classroom walls.

In 1996, it was estimated that replacements at the 10 worst schools would

cost more than $20 million. In 1999, during the Banyan Creek crisis, former

school board member Jody Gleason said the money had been set aside in the

1996 budget, but the work was never done.

At that point, the district committed to what was considered a realistic

schedule for repairs -- two schools a year -- and money was set aside to do

it.

In 2000, Banyan Creek was fixed, followed by H.L. . A $2.7 million

job is under way at Loxahatchee Groves Elementary, where the media center

was closed for a month this school year because of mold. And next year, a

$3.9 million job will be done at Bear Lakes Middle School, which was

supposed to be done this year. Each job can take up to 18 months.

The rest of the schedule is: Omni Middle and Liberty Park Elementary in

2004; B. Duncan Middle and Sandpiper Shores Elementary in 2005; and

Wellington Landings Middle, Hammock Pointe Elementary, Panther Run

Elementary and Timber Trace Elementary in 2006.

In general, the district's air-quality problems aren't as bad as a few years

ago, Skerlec said. Since the district dumped ServiceMaster, the private

company that managed its maintenance services in 1999 and 2000, the district

has done better preventive work on its air-conditioning units, Skerlec said.

Also, the district and American Lung Association distributed a pamphlet on

air-quality tips to all its teachers this year. Among other advice, it says

report spills immediately to a custodian to prevent mildew and set

thermostats properly.

Still, nothing makes a difference like a system replacement. At Banyan

Creek, students and teachers actually feel a difference, Skerlec said.

" When you go from 70 percent humidity to 45 percent, you know there's a

difference.... They're working extremely well, " he said.

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