Congers Elementary Repairs Could Cost $8.3 Million

The recommendations of the engineering consultants hired by the Clarkstown School District divided the estimated costs into categories of “critical work” at $5,576,559 and “added components” at $2,744,015 for a total of $8,320,574. 

School Board President Mike Aglialoro said members will review the report and decide at Thursday’s 8 p.m. meeting what to do about the school and if a bond should be issued, for what repairs and how much money. A public referendum would be held on issuing bonds for the project.

The presentation at Tuesday’s special board meeting at Felix Festa Middle School covered the third phase of the engineering study of the Congers building, parts of which date back to 1927. CSArch Vice President Thomas Ritzenthaler showed photos of the deterioration to walls and steel beams as he explained the final part of the evaluation. The first two studies focused on the gym/auditorium area while the third analysis looked at whether similar damage existed in other part of the building and suggested structural repairs and added components. 

He told the board members and approximately 100 Congers parents and residents that repairs previously made to the building had not corrected the problem and it needed to be addressed or moisture would keep rusting the steel, pushing masonry out of alignment and overall weaken the structure. 

Ritzenthaler recommended replacement of 23,000 square feet of roof on the addition built in 1956 along with replacement of windows in that section of the building and the 1970 library addition and removing asbestos floor tiles.  Bringing the building into ADA compliance by installing ramps, widening doorways and adding an elevator was also suggested.

The critical work including repairs and replacement of gym walls was priced at $1,586,753, exterior work and structural repairs at $3,056,202 and roofs at $933,604. The added components were ADA accessibility estimated at $997,972, new windows at $974,661 and asbestos tile removal at $771,382. 

Board members questioned Ritzenthaler and two other engineers about how certain they were that rusting existed in other areas of the building and if by the state education department would require full compliance with ADA. Trustee Wendy Adolff asked how long the project could take and was told drawing up plans, getting state approvals, putting out bids and actual construction could run 15 months.

Parents and residents asked about the possibility of getting state aid to help fund repairs.  Assistant Superintendent John LaNave said the state might not consider it an emergency situation because the district has available space to accommodate the Congers students who were assigned to three different schools at the beginning of the school year and then relocated to St. Augustine’s School. If approved, state aid would compensate the district for 55 cents of each dollar spent.   

Lori Santulli commented on the photos showing the damage. 

“This is terrifying to look at,” she said. 

She said outdated roofs are a problem throughout the district and wondered if other schools have the same conditions and if a bond covering all of them should be voted on. Other parents agreed with her that the lack of maintenance was an issue for the entire school district. 

LaNave said the cost of a $5.6 million, 15-year bond to address the critical work would cost $500,000 in debt service yearly, which is equal to one third of one percentage point of the district’s tax levy. The cost of an $8.6, 15-year million bond would increase the tax levy by one half of one point.

The entire presentation should be available on the district’s web site on Wednesday. 

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