Work at Lindell, LBMS ongoing

The Long Beach School District continues to move forward with its three-phase master plan to upgrade out-dated facilities and programs.

Lindell School, a 70-year-old building, is the second oldest in the district and has been under reconstruction since July, with work being done on its roof and parapets. Michael DeVito, the district’s chief operating officer, said the construction crews are moving along with work on the front stairwell, elevator and general structural repairs.

Work has started on the roof at Long Beach Middle School, which DeVito said is moving slowly because of multiple snow days and cold temperatures. “It’s definitely impeded our ability to get it done more quickly,” he said

Despite the slow progress, DeVito said the district is ahead of schedule with the roof refurbishment since preparations were made early in case of a mild winter. “For so many years we’ve had a mild January and February,” said DeVito, who added that crews need 40-degree weather to work. The $38.1 million in state aide that the district estimates receiving for such projects will not be affected by any of the school funding cuts that Governor David Paterson is proposing, DeVito said.

A project that will not be covered by the $98.9 million bond, which Long Beach community voted to approve last May, will be the repair of the water filtration system at the high school pool. The $550,000 project will be put up for voter approval with the budget and school board trustee election on May 18. Using state monies to fund the project, DeVito said 42 percent of the project will be reimbursed to the school district over the course of 10 to 15 years, while the remainder will come from EXCEL funds, which is reimbursed during the next fiscal year. He added there will be no added cost to the taxpayer.

Comments about this story? JKellard@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 213.