Board Balks At Cost Of Metal Roof For Middle School

 HARWICH – The select board is withholding a recommendation on a town meeting article to replace the Monomoy Regional Middle School roof out of concern that the cost of a metal roof is too high given the age of the school.

 The board wants to hear from the school building committee on the benefits of a metal roof as opposed to a more traditional asphalt roof on the Chatham school. 

Both Harwich and Chatham have town meeting articles seeking authorization to borrow $11,801,239 for the replacement of the school roof. The district is eligible for a 37.32 percent Massachusetts School Building Authority accelerated repair program grant that will reduce the final cost. The cost of the project is based on the district’s foundation enrollment, which puts Harwich’s share at 77.02 percent.

A few weeks ago, Select Board member Mark Kelleher, a member of the building committee, questioned why a metal roof was being proposed, pointing out that the school is 60 years old. A metal roof would last another 50 years, and he questioned whether the bones of the building would endure for that long. Kelleher suggested installing an asphalt roof at a reduced cost.

 “Keep an open mind about what the material would be,” Select Board Chair Donald Howell told school administrators on March 30. “If you had a car, you might want to get it painted, but if the engine is really old, it doesn’t matter. You might want to consider what the life of the roof is in conjunction with the useful life of the entire building.” 

Monomoy Superintendent Scott Carpenter said the way the MSBA operates, the town has to apply for the highest amount of the projected cost, which would be the price of the metal roof. He said the building committee can choose to alter the plan before the roof is installed and could decide on an asphalt roof. But if approved in both town meetings and a debt exclusion ballot question in Harwich, the money would be available for the metal roof if that was determined to be the best choice, he said.

One of the reasons the architects and project managers are looking at metal roofing is that several years ago the front side roof of the fifth grade section of the school blew off in a northeaster, as did part of the roof at the Chatham Elementary School, Carpenter said. The Chatham schools are much closer to the water than the buildings in Harwich, making them more vulnerable to roof damage, he said.

 “A metal roof is something that’s not going to need to be replaced again in our lifetime,” said Carpenter. “It will be much better withstanding the pressure of a northeaster striking that building.”

 “Essentially, I'm saying the roof will be there in 50 years, but will the underlying building be there in 50 years?” said Howell.

It was pointed out that sections of the flat roof on the school were replaced when the school was renovated in the 1990s.

Monomoy business manager Michael MacMillan said the MSBC has a requirement that school roofs must be solar ready, which means that they must be able to support solar panels.

 “So we looked at a couple of different options,” MacMillan said. “One was maximizing solar because given the cost of electricity, I don’t think that’s a terrible idea. However, just because of the weight load, it would require us to reinforce portions of the roof in order to add solar panels. It was cost prohibitive to maximize it.”

A couple of sections of roof are facing the right direction for solar and that means they could be solar ready, he said, which would lower district costs. There have been a small number of solar panels there, but they are not active, he added. Carpenter said the metal roofing would allow for cost-effective solar panels through clip-on installation. 

Select Board member Jeffrey Handler said he would like to see a history of the roofing at the school, asking if it has been replaced since its inception.

Howell raised the issue of Chatham and Harwich splitting capital costs for the project, citing Harwich’s 77.02 percent assessment.

 “Chatham students are not limited to 22 percent of the building, so when you are doing capital improvements, it’s hard to make the argument it should be pro rata," he said. “Because there is no way to ration out electricity, operating costs, siding or a roof. Everybody should be sharing equally in the capital part of this.”

 “Asphalt shingles will last 25 years,” said Kelleher. “Look at the enrollment trends. In 25 years that school may be consolidated into the high school. That’s something to keep in mind.”

Board members said they would not act on a motion to support the funding sought for the project but would leave a recommendation out of the warrant. They agreed to have the building committee come before the board to discuss the roofing project.

Handler asked if the board had any true leverage over the decision.

 “I believe the [school] administration has not made the decision yet on looking at the positives and negatives of metal and shingle roofs, and that they haven’t landed on where they feel the best long term value is,” said Town Administrator Jay McGrail. “I feel they will listen. I don’t know where the leverage point is, but I feel they would value input from the town of Harwich.”

Howell said the article will remain in the warrant and the board will inform the public of its recommendation heading into town meeting. The town’s finance committee endorsed the article on a 9-0 vote.