The Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District Board of Trustees discussed potential projects for Boothbay Region Elementary and High schools Jan. 6. The projects would follow $5 million in bonds that have gone toward large projects over the past two years.

Alternative Organizational Structure (AOS) 98 Director of Facilities and Maintenance Dave Benner said he has a $75,000 proposal to replace the BRES gymnasium’s mechanical wall and, among other potential projects, plans for around $47,000 in roofing replacement, $32,000 in grading and repaving behind BRES and $58,000 in repaving the bus parking area.

Benner said while construction company Haskell and Hall was finishing caulking around the outside of the BRHS gymnasium windows, they checked the inside caulking which tested positive for asbestos. Said Benner, “It's not a danger or a hazard unless it becomes friable, so if you're chipping away at it or sand it then it becomes dangerous.”

Removing the asbestos-positive caulking will cost around $6,000 and replacing, it about $1,000, said Benner. “We're going to (do) some additional cleaning of the area even though we don't have to abate it like real asbestos … There will be air testing prior to and air clearance afterwards. Because it's inside the school, we just felt as though it would be worth it.”

Trustees approved $7,000 in spending from the $40,888.02 left over from the bond.

AOS 98 Superintendent Keith Laser said the two custodial jobs created in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic are being kept on and he has high hopes those and other jobs can be funded by the upcoming COVID-19 stimulus package. “What I saw today, which is nothing official, is that when we receive this money we have until September 2023 to spend it all. It's going to have implications whether we can use it for personnel, but I saw a statement from Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos (who) said she wants to see this money go toward catching up kids who are having trouble with the COVID stay-at-home work … Hopefully it will mean we can hire some people, but the last two rounds of this money came with a lot of different rules and regulations …”

The CSD school committee and trustees will meet at 5 p.m. Jan. 27 via Zoom for the final campus master plan presentation. The next trustees meeting is at 5:15 p.m. Feb. 3 via Zoom.