The trustees at the South East Cornerstone Public School Division conference table received a direct update on their schools from facilities manager Andy Dobson during their Jan. 16 regular open board meeting in Weyburn.
Dobson oversees the physical management of the division's 38 school buildings as well as their maintenance and office buildings. He also oversees properties belonging to the division but no longer used for educational purposes.
In fact he said two Cornerstone properties that are no longer in use were being inquired about in Tribune and Lake Alma with the Village of Tribune looking to purchase a former school parcel that still has a building on it while the Lake Alma property consists of a simple land base.
Dobson noted that four employees in the facilities department will be retiring this year and finding replacements will be a challenge as will the hiring of a journeyman plumber.
During his report, Dobson pointed out approvals have been gained for roof replacement work at the Estevan Comprehensive School with one phase already underway and nearing completion and the other scheduled to get underway a bit later.
Dobson also noted that the major capital works project, the addition to and refurbishment of the Weyburn Comprehensive School, hit some snags when it was revealed that the contractor had installed roofing and flooring that had not met specifications. This has led to a good portion of the new roof having to be taken down and the flooring taken out with the contractor being put on a default notice.
He said the project is still listed as being on schedule. In the meantime, various directives have been issued regarding restrictive access to the school by staff, students and the general public who are having to use alternate doorways and hallways to reach various areas of the school during the reconstruction process.
Relocatable classrooms have been assigned to Assiniboia Park School in Weyburn and Moosomin.
Dobson noted the junior high school in Weyburn will undergo a facelift and become an elementary school once the junior high students move into the rebuilt Weyburn Comp, while Queen Elizabeth and Haig Schools will be closed and decommissioned.
He said a rebuild at Souris School is necessary but hasn't been put into the approval mix by the Ministry of Education yet, although a rebuild at Carlyle has.
The facilities manager said assessments of roofs on all the division's facilities have been completed and inspections are now being carried out on all the heating and ventilation systems. He pointed to some areas where impending problems could surface in the coming years and also noted that a steam boiler taken out of the former Oxbow school will be installed in the Macoun School in a proactive move to address an impending heating issue there.
Dobson also talked to the trustees about the preventative maintenance and renewal policy that is coming into effect this spring. He said one aspect of the new guideline will see maintenance teams spending more consecutive hours in each facility addressing all identified immediate needs as well as potential problems, rather than having them returning to schools multiple times during the course of a school year.
"We'd rather see them doing that than doing a lot of running around. These are projects that will not require ministry approval," said Dobson.
As in all matters, money will dictate what can be handled and the question is always "will we have enough to do it all?"
He also warned trustees that the new edict is clear that the Education Ministry "will not be funding unused spaces."
Dobson said he will not be able to complete his portion of the divison's budget until the provincial budget is brought down in March and "we hear what we're getting from them."
In the meantime, a priority management system has been groomed within his department and is moving along as planned.
