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OIA engineers, PSS meet over deferred maintenance projects
The Public School System has been meeting with three different expert groups over the last couple of weeks to assess the start of systemwide deferred maintenance projects, according to Education Commissioner Dr. Rita Sablan.
The visiting groups were composed of architects, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing experts, and civil engineers out of Hawaii.
The groups aim to finalize a report in June that will set up the implementation of the deferred maintenance projects.
After this the request for proposals and timelines for repair can be made, Sablan said.
In their visits, the groups have been verifying and checking to see if items identified in earlier phases have been taken cared and whether or not new items have arisen.
The project, based on the Office of Insular Affairs “Assessment of Buildings and Classrooms,” aims to address the $10.5 million and growing deferred maintenance costs in all 19 schools of PSS.
The top priority of the project is “safety and health,” said the commissioner.
The “most critical” items are electricity, fire alarms, and fire protection systems. These are the immediate priorities, she said.
Over a period of five years, the Office of Insular Affairs have asked that insular governors set aside $1 million per year over five years, with the amount going toward the maintenance and upgrading of school buildings.
Sablan told Saipan Tribune this $5 million is not enough to cover all the deferred maintenance, but that “we hope we can work with our elected officials for their support.”
With the exception of five schools built in the early 2000s, the average lifespan for PSS schools is over 40 years old.
Sablan said they hope to work with the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services to address the fire protection systems in their schools.
“The [department] are the ones who authorize permits or licenses to ensure the school system is compliant with national fire code regulations. We are grateful for their partnership,” she said.
