Committee members present: 
Jean Tremblay                          Jeff Hill                         Reed Leberman
Jo Carpenter                            Kathleen Kelley                        Dennis Pednault

Central office Staff present:  Pauline Plourde, Business Administrator

Public in attendance: Paul Bousquet, Principal; David Goyette, Head Maintenance
Chad Dryden, BDS Reporter

6:07 Meeting called to order

6:10 Jean Tremblay moved to accept the minutes of July 19, 2004 as presented, seconded by Jo Carpenter. Unanimously accepted

6:15 Committee Membership
Pauline Plourde was directed to prepare a letter to inform John Losier of the need for a replacement of him on the committee for Reed Leberman to sign before Monday August 9, 2004.

Pauline Plourde was directed to send a letter to Joe Rodgers asking him to be a member of the committee and noting our appreciation of his thoughts about the building project as noted in a recent article in the newspaper. Even if he does not have time for full membership on the committee we would like him to attend any and all meeting he can place into his schedule. Other names were raised as possible candidates Glen Eastman and Tim Harmond.

6:25   A time limit for the meeting was discussed. All meetings will end between 8:30 to 9:00 p.m.

6:30  Jean Tremblay informed reported that the Gorham School Board clarified that the Building Committee could choose to have two separate projects (Ed Fenn renovation -High School renovations)

6:35 Paul Bousquet reviewed his list of repair required at the Ed Fenn School. Notably he stated that since the Jordan Barker Report took place, the needs have changed and that two more classes do not need to be added because of recent class sizes. He also mentioned that a gym is needed not only for educational programming but also for recreational programming for the entire community. It was noted that unless we are going to change the way we deliver educational services the building does not need to be replaced.

Paul Bousquet reviewed what had been done to date:
o Asbestos Removal
o Fire Panel Added
o Door Alarms added
o Water access improved for the future addition of a sprinkler system
o In ground Oil tank was upgraded

Paul also stated what was not included in the Jordan Barker Report that might need to be addressed:

o       Boiler replacement

o       Kitchen replacement – roughly 1800 sq. ft.

o       Maintenance Storage Space – roughly 1000 sq. ft.

o       Emergency Generator

o       Door Replacement and/or door jam removal/replacement

o       Insulate roof


We toured the building. Ventilation ducks were present but not functional because the blower system was not adequate. Outside temperatures might be in the 60’s but inside it might be over 75. Several options for solving this problem were discussed: some more energy efficient, some more aesthetically pleasing, and some more efficient to maintain.

Jordan Barker made some assumptions when they proposed renovations for Ed Fenn School. Committee members were reminded to ask about those assumptions before they accept what was proposed by Jordan Barker. For instance if we install sprinklers, do we need to add egress windows.  All classroom doors must be replaced but we do not know whether they must open into the classroom or if they can continue to open into the hallway. The price difference would be significant.

Security needs were discussed such as: the windows into the hall way being covered or blocked, phone systems might need to be added, windows to the outside might need not be replaced as much as the hardware on the window may need to be replaced.

We want to be energy efficient and maintenance wise, for instance the building could have an insulation membrane added outside of the bricks instead of re-pointing the bricks. We could insulate the roof before adding the pitched roof, but we need to consider the sprinkler system route through the pitched roof. We want to maintain the large window and maybe add roof windows that would allow the light to enter the school which could then function if a power outage took place.

We discussed the traffic flow and how this might cost more than anticipated. Aesthetics of the landscape and façade must be considered as well.

The benefits to students would include more security and better safety as well as more recreation space and better ventilation.

The hard part of our charge is to balance and prioritize what must be done today versus what the taxpayer can afford.

Paul Bousquet will return at the next meeting with a prioritized list with cost and priority level of each item. As it stands based on our cursory review we need about $2,000,000 to $3,000,000 for the Ed Fenn alone depending on whether we add a gymnasium or not. This means that the town would pay anywhere from $800,000 to $1,200,000 (after State funding) for the Ed Fenn building renovations. We discussed various funding scenarios: Bonding, State funding flow, grant funding.

We discussed using the “Right Road Building” consulting services. We decided that we would all try to attend the next seminar offered through the state on building project development.


Next meeting is August 19, 2004 at 6:00 pm at the Ed Fenn School. We will discuss:
o AVER generated demographics
o Paul’s Cost Analysis of the Ed Fenn Renovations
o We will begin to write a project mission and vision statement
o We will add a new member
o Review the detail notes from the last meeting as prepared by Kathleen Kelley and Pauline Plourde.

September 9th at 6:00 p.m., we will tour the middle high school.

September 28th – the Office of State Building Aid in conjunction with the NH School Board Association will be offering a workshop, “Building Better Buildings at a Lower Cost” in Littleton from 6:30 – 8:30 pm.  Please notify Pauline as soon as possible if you can attend.

9:00 p.m. Jean Tremblay moved to adjourn, Kathleen Kelley seconded the motion. Unanimously approved.