Board approves 5 portable classrooms
BROWNSVILLE – After voting on the matter twice, the Brownsville School board authorized Michael Molnar Associates to oversee the installation of five portable classrooms at the high school/middle school with two members changing their votes in order to move forward on the district’s renovation project there. Board members Francine Pavone and Roseanne Markovich initially voted no, while director Rocky Brashear abstained from voting on a motion to authorize Molnar “to provide additional services in relation to the installation of five portable classrooms at a cost not to exceed $4,000.” In discussing the matter, Markovich said she didn’t understand why Molnar required more money for work related to the renovation project for which he was hired.
Molnar explained the fee is primarily (80 percent) for the cost of his electrical engineers and also includes engineering fees for layout design and proper ramp support for the portable trailers.
But when the directors realized, after questioning from Brashear, that the renovation project would be delayed if the motion was voted down, Markovich reintroduced the motion and she and Brashear both voted yes the second time around. Pavone had to leave the meeting early so her vote remained the same.
The board agreed to lease four portable classrooms from William Scotsman at a cost of $74,590. Those classrooms will not be reimbursed as the district had previously hoped, but Molnar told the board the state department of education considers temporary classrooms as site-development costs and the district “wouldn’t get a lot of money back, anyway.”
Dr. Gerry Grant noted the fifth portable classroom to be installed at the high school/middle school is already owned by the district and will be moved from Hiller Elementary School.
In other business the board:
Approved a request from Natalie Zuchelkowski, kindergarten teacher, for a sabbatical leave for health/medical reasons for the 2002/2003 school year.
Extended Kim Cover Sheehan’s child rearing leave for the first nine weeks of the 2002-2003 school year.