(Majority vote required).
(Recommended by the School Board Vote: 5-0-0).
(Recommended by the Budget Committee Vote: 12-0-0).
Dating back to the 1960s 70's and 80's, 14 additions to our schools were built to address our increasing enrollments. At the time, there were no standards for outside makeup air as a part of the overall ventilation system designs for any of the original buildings, nor any of these additions. Recently, an analysis of the air quality within classrooms across the district was undertaken, and there were several areas within these buildings where air quality improvements were recommended (based on measured levels of carbon dioxide). Given the events of the past year the board, and most parents and students, have a heightened sense of the importance of air quality within our classrooms, supporting a healthier learning environment for our students and staff.
Carbon dioxide levels in the classroom have been shown to be directly related to a student's alertness and ability to concentrate. High levels of carbon dioxide indicate a lack of fresh air intake, and that negatively affects the health, attendance rate and learning ability of students. The measured levels of carbon dioxide within classrooms across the district show a total of 56 classrooms where the CO2 levels are higher than the level recommended by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). This includes 24 rooms at MHS, 8 rooms at RFS, 9 rooms at TFS, 7 rooms at MES, and 8 rooms at JMUES. The only school that does not require any ventilation upgrades is the Merrimack Middle School which was constructed in 2004.
This warrant article covers the cost of all the work items required that will introduce fresh air into those identified areas within the buildings, filter that air, and temper it based on the outside temperature during colder winter months. Ongoing maintenance of these systems, due to their simplicity, will require only regular filter changes and minor cleanings during the year. The lifespan of these units can run, with proper care, up to 35 to 40 years. This warrant article, if passed, will authorize the district to enter into a lease-purchase agreement that will result in all of these focus areas being addressed within the first 2 years of the agreement, and allow the district to pay for the total cost over a 10 year period. The first-year cost, as identified in the warrant article itself, at a lower level than the remaining 9 years of the lease term. This lease-purchase option offers a more cost-effective method of achieving these air quality goals vs other funding options considered and allows the work to be completed in a timely fashion. After these initial target classroom areas are addressed, an ongoing evaluation of the air quality within the buildings will be undertaken, and any future needs beyond these target areas will be identified for future consideration.
Two other points:
1. The "escape" clause referenced in the warrant is a legal reference that is required to for any lease option that would be considered. In essence, it enables the district to back out of future years of payment on this lease agreement. However, doing so would require removal of all the equipment that will be installed and returned to the lessor, which would certainly not be something that should be considered.
2. The board did consider utilization of upcoming CARES Act funds for this purpose. However, the anticipated funding would not have been anywhere near an adequate level to achieve these cross-district goals, and given the time constraints to spend these grant funds observed previously, the district would likely not have adequate time to purchase AND INSTALL the equipment needed. As such, any CARES funding the district were to receive would be utilized to address other opportunities as outlined by the funding guidelines of that grant.
TAX IMPACT - up to $.03 cents per thousand or a total of $6.00 dollars on a 200K house.
This article has been recommended by the School Board and the Budget Committee.