The Mt. Pleasant Community School Board met for a special session on Wednesday evening. There was one topic of discussion brought to the table. The due diligence reports from Carl A. Nelson Construction Company and Terracon for the Iowa Wesleyan buildings were the reason behind this special meeting.
The report from Carl A. Nelson Construction Company revealed a mixture of pros and cons. They were taking a look at the construction and making sure that the buildings were structurally sound. The Student Union is built well, but the windows are not energy efficient, and the roof is “probably at the end of it’s life.” A new HVAC system would need to be installed as well. The plumbing in the building was revealed to be fine for now, and there are no apparent leaks within the building.
The HOWE Hall does not have much wrong with it, other than that a new fire alarm system will need to be installed to fit the code. The roof has a few patches that are not done well, but those should be rather quick fixes. Overall, the building is in good condition. It is the newest building on central campus, and that shows when the plumbing and electrical systems are investigated and found to be in good condition.
The Chapel is a “well built, strong building. It has lasted a long time, and it’s going to last a lot longer.” The HVAC system was installed in 2009 and is in very good condition, as well as the electrical system and plumbing. The basement floor of the Chapel has a fair bit of moisture in the office area which is causing the concrete floor to deteriorate.
The report from Terracon found that there is no need to assess any further at this moment. However, asbestos was discovered in the Student Union and minimal amounts were found in other buildings.
This all comes with a cost, and looking at the mid-range for asbestos abatement for those buildings would likely cost around $550,000. A board member did a rough estimate based on the range presented in both reports to fix all that is required and came up with a figure out $5.5 million dollars or so. This dollar amount also contains the purchase price of the buildings.
The board currently has $3.4 million from the penny sales tax fund, and $2.0 million (or so) in a different fund. These can both be spent on the buildings. They were also told that there are grants that can essentially cover the entire cost of the asbestos abatement, and that these buildings would most likely qualify given their history.
The school board does not have a date set for closing at this moment.
The Terracon report and the Carl A. Nelson Construction Company report are available on the district’s website for the public to look through.
https://www.mtpcsd.org/ Under “News and Announcements”