Board approves Warde roof project

The Board of Education on Tuesday approved plans and specifications for the Fairfield Warde High School roof replacement project.

In May, a state school construction bill was amended to allow the town to apply for state reimbursement to replace the 21-year-old roof's 56 sections, which in a 12-month period has had 185 leaks needing repair.

Two bids for the project, expected to take place in phases over four years, came in at $6.36 million and $6.34 million after initial estimates of about $11 million. The town expects to receive a reimbursement of about 25 percent of eligible costs.

Originally, town leaders decided not to pursue $3 million in state reimbursement by adhering to state laws requiring a certain roof pitch for water runoff that would have added $5 million in costs to the project. Furthermore, state legislators said Warde's pitch requirement did not guarantee additional protection from water damage.