May 5, 2016 5 min read

Belle Vernon School Board voted 8-1 Monday to add a phase of work to the existing energy services contract for the high school with OpTerra Energy Services Inc.

The cost of the additional work is not to exceed $7.7 million. Superintendent Dr. John Wilkinson said the additional phase will include replacing more than a mile of deteriorated pipe underneath the high school that is rotting and could cause failure in the heating and cooling systems.

He said the district also plans to replace machinery such as deteriorated and outdated HVAC equipment, cooling towers, and DDC automatic temperature controls. He said this will allow for better temperature control for students throughout district buildings.

Wilkinson said the “hearts and lungs” of the building are shot.

“We are looking at things that are critical to the hearts and lungs of this building (high school) and the whole district,” Wilkinson said.

Wilkinson said the previous phase of infrastructure upgrades saved the district $457,406, which is $75,031 more than the guaranteed annual savings. He said the energy-saving efforts helped reduce water and sewage bills.

Wilkinson said this new phase is estimated to cost $255,000 per year with a fixed interest rate of 3.2 percent. This phase will yield an estimated $5.5 million in savings. The district plans to have financing in place for the project in May, and the work is expected to begin in June. Wilkinson said with the new construction, there will be no air conditioning at the high school for roughly a month and a half at the beginning of the 2016-17 school year.

“Doing nothing will result in considerable repair expenditures and potential major disruptions to students and staff,” school board President Joe Grata said. Grata said by approving this phase, the district can keep all of the buildings viable for the next 20 to 25 years.

“This nearly self-funding, $7.7 million project will put our house in good order for years to come rather than imposing extreme burdens on property and business owners in our district,” Grata said.

Edward Naylor, assistant board secretary, asked the board remove plans for adding LED lighting fixtures to Rostraver Middle School until officials can get a solid number on the cost for the fixtures for that particular building. Naylor said the board had considered tearing the building down before, so he is worried about putting more money into that building.

Board member Aaron Bialon voted against the amendment and said this is third or fourth time he has voted against the energy-saving plans because of the lack of results. Bialon said the temperature problems have not been solved with the previous phases of this project, and spending more on another phase is slighting the students. “In lieu of guaranteed savings, I’d rather make sure that the students are comfortable,” Bialon said.

The board unanimously approved refinancing of a series of 2011 bonds with a call date of Oct. 1, meaning the bonds cannot be advance refunded more than 90 days prior to that date. The current principal outstanding is $5,960,000, with a 3.125 percent interest rate. Wilkinson said with the refinancing plan, the district expects to save about $183,200, based on a conservative estimate of current interest rates. Wilkinson said by refinancing the bonds, the district could be looking at a lower interest rate, somewhere between 1.4 and 2.3 percent. Wilkinson said this refinancing will not increase the district’s payments or extend the term of the bonds.

The Central Westmoreland Career and Technology Center budget for 2016-2017 was approved by the board. The CTC budget of $9,080,123 is voted on by nine districts in the area. Bialon said Belle Vernon has 70 students currently enrolled, with a district contribution of $436,346.26. Bialon said based on student interest, officials estimate that the district will have 65 students enrolled at the CTC for the 2016-2017 school year, at a cost of $430,675.10.

“There is a big trend in attendance with the trade schools,” Bialon said. Bialon said at the last Joint Operating Committee meeting, board members discussed how the CTC is at maximum capacity for the types of classes it can offer. They also discussed what alternatives can be used to expand the curriculum in near future, such as providing more classroom space.

In other action:

• The Belle Vernon board also approved Jeffery Adams for the position of technician in the Technology Department at a salary of $40,000.

• Grata said the district held its annual Senior Athletic Awards Banquet on Sunday at the Willow Room to honor 73 senior student athletes. Grata said the awards given to the students had a value of $12,000. He said the district has 23 student-athletes who have received full or partial aid for college due to their exceptional athletic ability.

• The board will review a draft proposal for Policy 824 – Maintaining Professional Adult/Student Boundaries. Once the board has reviewed the draft of this policy, it expects to vote on the proposal next month.