WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — The Hartford School Board is considering a $20.8 million bond in next year’s budget to fund district-wide repairs and infrastructure improvements in its school buildings, including roof replacements, heating and ventilation system upgrades and new sidewalks and flooring.

At a meeting on Dec. 13, Buildings and Grounds Director Jonathan Garthwaite presented a comprehensive list of over 70 targeted facility repairs or upgrades in the district’s six school buildings and its supervisory building. According to district administrators, many of these projects have been deferred for several years and need to be addressed soon.

Some proposed projects include roof replacements at Dothan Brook and Ottauquechee elementary schools, a $1.5 million stormwater drainage system at Hartford High School, an HVAC system replacement at Hartford Memorial Middle School and new paving at White River elementary school.

The bond also would provide $500,000 to develop a 20-year strategic plan to help determine future facility needs based on projected growth in student enrollment.

“The district has grown substantially in the last 30 years,” Garthwaite said. “Right now we have about 1,850 students and north of 450,000 total square feet (in school facilities space). … And 300-plus additional housing units (are anticipated) in town over the next four or five years, (which) is going to add to the student population in one way or another.”

In the nearer term, several of the schools are slated to receive new windows or heating system upgrades to improve energy efficiency, and each school would receive funds to complete targeted interior painting or floor replacements.

“We have life-safety systems that have to be upgraded or replaced and heating, ventilation, electrical and plumbing systems that need to be upgraded and maintained,” Garthwaite told the board at the Dec.13 meeting.

District leaders hope to complete these projects within the next five years, in effort to ensure that every school building meets modern standards in respect to operating and energy efficiency and safety and compliance with fire code regulations and the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA.

More than half of the district’s facilities are over 50 years old and many heating and ventilation systems, though still operating, are old and have parts that are no longer replaceable, according to Garthwaite.

While individual schools have had targeted renovations over the years, Garthwaite said the district aims for the schools to be “equitable” in regard to their infrastructure.

Garthwaite said this study will also provide guidance in regard to the types of educational spaces that will be needed to accommodate programs such as music and arts and STEM, as well as spaces frequently used by the town community such as the auditoriums and athletic fields.

Town voters would need to approve the funding for this bond at the annual School Meeting in March.

While the School Board has not decided yet whether to place the bond question on the voter ballot, some School Board members indicated their support for the proposal at the Dec. 13 meeting.

Board member Douglas Heavisides noted that the most recently constructed schools in the district, Dothan Brook and Ottauquechee, are 30 years old.

The pandemic “hurt everybody, where it took away five years where we hadn’t done (any facility improvements),” said Heavisides. “The buildings keep getting older, and the cost to do those things (has doubled). And that’s going to continue. So if we don’t stop here and get caught up, we’re going to be in trouble.”

Board members said they would like to get more information about the tax impact of this bond and to consider the option of a bond to fund a portion of the plan, such as for the engineering work.

The School Board is currently considering a proposed district operating budget of nearly $42 million for the 2024-2025 school year. It is an increase of approximately $5 million from the current school year.

This includes a $928,000 expenditure approved by the School Board at the Dec. 13 meeting to pay for facility repairs and upgrades that Garthwaite said need to be addressed immediately.

These projects include $210,000 in improvements to bring the high school auditorium into compliance with the state fire code and the Americans with Disabilities Act, $110,000 to correct stormwater drainage problems at Ottauquechee School and $75,000 to replace the elevator controls at Hartford Memorial Middle School.

The total expenditure for these projects will be funded using revenues from the district fund balance, a reserve of money from end-of-year budget surpluses used to offset the tax impacts of future expenditures.

Increases in the proposed budget next year are partly attributable to a 16% increase in employee health insurance and contractual increases in salaries and wages for teachers and support staff. The district also seeks to hire an additional five school custodians at a budget of $460,000.

Patrick Adrian may be reached at padrian@vnews.com or at 603-727-3216.