District Facilities

Brett Bradley, Director: email
Office: 481-3600 ext. 4007
Fax: 481-3608

Teresa Rill, Secretary: email
Office: 481-3600 ext. 4016
Fax: 481-3648

Welcome to the Facilities Department of the Grandview Heights City School District.

The facilities department consists of custodial, maintenance, and grounds and is staffed by 12 full-time employees. The facilities department maintains 4 buildings, totaling over 271,000 square feet. The buildings and grounds cover over 18.3 acres in the City of Grandview Heights, Ohio.

Our Facilities

Robert Louis Stevenson Elementary School, located at 1065 Oxley Road, is a 2-story brick masonry building originally constructed in 1926. In 1971 an addition was added on the west side of the building giving it an L-shaped appearance. Robert Louis Stevenson Elementary currently houses kindergarten through third grade students.

Edison Intermediate Middle School, located at 1240 Oakland Avenue, is a 2-story brick and masonry building. The original structure was constructed in 1911. In 1930 a 2-story structure was erected west of the original building. In 1954 another 2-story addition was built onto the south end of the original building. In 1971 a single story was added across the south, connecting the end stairs of both the 1911 and 1930 wings. The final addition was built on the north end of the original building in 1994.

In 1948 the single story Annex building was built across the street from Edison Intermediate Middle School. The Annex building sits on the site of the original High School that was built in 1903. Edison Intermediate Middle School currently houses grades four through eight.

The High School, located at 1587 W. Third Avenue, is a 2-story brick and masonry building built in 1922. In 1953 a 2-story extension was added to the south of the main building. In 1956 a gymnasium was attached to the south of the main building. The interior of the original U-shaped 1922 building was in-filled in 1957 with a 2-story auditorium. During this time the area to the south was in-filled with a cafeteria and kitchen.  The last expansion occurred in 1971, when the Industrial Arts wing was added to the west of the 1953 extension, and a multipurpose space was in-filled on the east side, north of the gym. The High School currently houses grades nine through twelve.

Needs Assessment

In late 2003, the facilities department started an in-house assessment of the physical buildings and grounds. The assessment not only looked at current facility needs, but identified future needs, so we looked 10-15 years ahead. Our assessment consisted of looking at large items such as roofs, HVAC, and small items such as painting and flooring. By late fall 2003 the in-house assessment was completed and the result was an extensive list. We divided our list into 2 categories Critical and Non Critical. The Critical List contained items that, if they failed, could disrupt classes. The estimated cost for items on the Critical List totaled 8 million dollars. Items on the Non Critical List would not disrupt classes if they malfunctioned. The estimated cost for projects on the Non Critical List totaled 6 million dollars, for a combined total of 14 million dollars.

On January 29, 2004, The facilities Department presented its in-house facilities assessment to the Board of Education during a special Board meeting. It was pointed out that the last significant upgrade of the district's facilities occurred as a result of the 1994 bond issue. The assessment pointed out that several items on the Critical List were well beyond their useful years of service and the district was experiencing costly repair bills to keep these systems functioning. 

District Facilities Committee

It was at this meeting, the Board approved a recommendation that a "District Facilities Committee" be established to review necessary permanent improvements, repairs, and continuing maintenance to the district facilities. The committee consisted of the Superintendent, Mr. D. Steven Allen, Treasurer, Mr. David Knisley, Facilities Director Mr. Jeffrey R. Lamb, Board Vice President Mrs. Kathy Lithgow, Board Member Dr. Gary Heydinger (Committee Chairman), and two members from the community: Mr. Jack Liberatore and Mr. Leonard Whitley. Both Mr. Liberatore and Mr. Whitley have experience in construction, building systems, and building maintenance.

The committee met five times during February through April 2005; in addition to these meetings, several committee members also toured the district's facilities on four other dates during this timeframe. The tours consisted of inspections of most of the items on both Critical and Non Critical Lists. Nearly every part of the interior and exterior of every building was toured. Particular emphasis was placed on the most critical Items, including HVAC systems, roofs, and other problem areas in and around the buildings.

In April of 2005, Mr. Eric Bode, CFO of the Ohio School Facilities Commission and Grandview resident, informed the district that the OSFC offers a service to do facility assessments at no cost to school districts. Plans were made to have the OSFC assessment done for our district.  The district received the assessment in mid July 2005. The OSFC assessment validated the in-house assessment conducted by the facilities department. The district's facilities committee then decided to have an engineer with expertise in HVAC systems look at the district's HVAC systems and determine whether an engineering design of any new of replacement heating systems would be necessary or helpful. Mr. Carl McMullen, a consulting engineer specializing in HVAC system design, toured the boiler rooms of the district buildings with several committee members on April 6, 2005. Mr. McMullen agreed that the district's recommendations were sound and that no heating redesign of the heating systems were warranted.  

After touring the facilities, the committee agreed with the scope of the in-house assessment for the needed improvements. The committee determined that its first objective was to prioritize the items on both the Critical and Non Critical Lists. The result was a list that would complete the bulk of the improvement projects in a seven-year period. Based on the high cost of completing the projects in seven years, the committee attempted to extend the duration of the prioritized proposed improvement projects. The committee came up with a fourteen-year plan for making all of the improvements, with annual expenditures in the range of $1,000.000.

The committee ultimately focused its attention on identifying the most critical permanent improvement issues, one that are necessary to prevent the closing of any school buildings or services.  The committee also recognized that additional expenditures be necessary for continuing maintenance issues, such as concrete, flooring, plumbing, etc., to prevent the district's facilities from falling into any further disrepair.

Recommendations

The committee recommended that the Board establish a dedicated budget for permanent improvement and continuing maintenance issues.  Further, the committee recommended the Board seek a 5-year 1.65 mil property tax levy dedicated to permanent improvements.  The 5-year 1.65 mil levy was placed on the ballot for November 8 2005.  The committee prepared a 5-year plan that addressed some of the critical repairs the district was facing.  Passage of the levy would allow the district to borrow 50% of the total levy amount up front so the district can begin some of the most critical repairs immediately.  The voters of Grandview Heights and Marble Cliff approve the 1.65 mil permanent improvement levy in November of 2005.

Year One Projects

Replacement of Steam Boiler & Associated Systems  
The High school steam boilers and associated systems were originally installed in 1971.  In 2001 the district began to see an increase in the number of repairs to the boilers and steam system.  In 2003 the district had the boilers evaluated by a licensed boiler inspector.  The was informed that the boilers were going to need extensive repairs in the near future in order to keep them in service.  Based on the age of the boilers, the increase repair costs, and the need for extensive repairs, the steam boilers and associated systems were placed on the critical list and the committee placed this project on the year one project list.

Stevenson Elementary Roof Replacement 
The roof over the original 1926 section of Stevenson Elementary was originally installed in the early 1970s.  This section of roof had a history of leaks going back to the late 1990s.  Starting in 2001 every reported leak was repaired, but with each rain new leaks would appear.  The roof leaks posed health and habitability concerns for the students and staff of Stevenson.  The district also was concerned about the potential effects the leaks might have on the structural integrity of the building.  The Stevenson Elementary roof replacement was on the list of critical projects and included on the year one project list.   

John Glenn Community Center Roof Replacement
The roof over the John Glenn Community Center was the original roof installed in the mid 1990's.  The roof had a history of leaks going back to the late 1990's. Each time a leak was repaired, new leaks appeared, the district had a roofing consultant look at the rubber membrane.  The consultant found that the rubber membrane had develop small pinholes that were the source of the leaks.  The consultant took samples from several locations and found pinholes had developed in those samples as well.  The roof on the John Glenn Community Center was on the critical list and was placed on the year one project list.  

HVAC Control and Monitoring Program  
The program that monitors and controls the HVAC equipment (Boilers, Chillers, Pumps, Fan Coils and Unit Ventilators) had become outdated and was prone to frequent malfunctions.  Originally installed in the early 1990s, the system lack the capability to be monitored and controlled off site.  It also did not provide the type of information necessary to allow the maintenance staff to identify and troubleshoot problems with the HVAC system.  The HVAC control and monitoring system was on the district's critical list and was added to the year one project list.

Continuing Maintenance Projects Year One

Concrete repairs to district sidewalks  
The district identified and repaired sections of damaged sidewalk at Stevenson elementary, and the high School.  

Asphalt resurfacing to district parking lots  
The district resurfaced the Stevenson upper faculty parking lot and seal coated the Edison staff parking lot, Middle school staff parking lot and the high gymnasium parking lot and High School service/delivery parking lot.

HVAC fan coil / unit ventilator replacement 
The district replaced 6 fan coil HVAC units at Stevenson Elementary in rooms 200, 202 and 206 at Stevenson Elementary

Interior flooring replacement 
The district replaced the stair treads on the North Edison stairwell, replaced the scrapper mat system in the East/West commons hallway.

Year Two Projects

Edison Intermediate Middle School Fire Alarm System Replacement  
The district started to a increase in the number of false alarms starting in 2004, despite regular yearly system maintenance.  The system could only be serviced and repairs parts purchased through one vendor.  The number of false alarms continue in 2005 to the point where the fire department declared the system unreliable.  The fire alarm system was on the critical list of repairs and the project was include in the year two projects.   

Dish Washing Machine Replacement  
The dish washing machine at the high school was originally installed in 1971.  After several repairs the food service department requested the dish washing machine be replaced. This was not on the critical list of projects, but the committee agreed to add this project to the year two projects. 

High School East/West Exterior Gym Door Replacement 
Both the East and West exterior gymnasium doors did not provide adequate security against unauthorized entry into the gymnasium.  After several attempts to make the doors "more secure the committee added this project to the year two project list. 

Continuing Maintenance Projects Year Two   

Concrete repairs to district sidewalks  
The district replaced sections of concrete sidewalk at the High School and Stevenson Elementary and extended the steps at the ornamental gates across from the High School.  

Asphalt resurfacing to district parking lots  
The district replaced the drive apron at the West High School faculty parking, Added two additional parking space for ADA compliance at the West High School faculty parking lot and replace a damaged section of asphalt at the High School Service entrance.   

HVAC fan coil / unit ventilator replacement 
The district replaced 4 fan coil HVAC units at Stevenson Elementary in rooms 206, and 208 at Stevenson Elementary

Interior flooring replacement  The district installed Walk off carpeting at 3 entrances at Stevenson Elementary.  

Year Three Projects

Boiler Replacement at Stevenson Elementary  
The heating system at Stevenson Elementary consists of two hot boilers that heat the original building.  A third hot water boiler heated the 1971 addition (the Kindergarten wing).  Originally these boilers were going to be replaced with similar equipment.  While looking a ways to reduce energy consumption and costs, the facilities department looked at integrating the two hot water systems into one.  This would eliminate the need for a third boiler, allow the district to install more efficient hot water boiler and double the equipment life expediency from 15 years to 30 years. The committee decided to accept the recommendation of the facilities department and added the modified Stevenson boiler project to the year three project list.

Replacement of East & West Flat Mansard Roofs on the High School 1953 Addition    
The rubber membrane on these two sections of roof had deteriorated significantly over the past few years and to prevent leaks the roofs needed replaced.  This project was not originally on the 5 year plan, The committee included it in the Three Year Project List.  

High School Chimney Demolition  
The High School Brick Chimney that was part of the original section of the High School had sign of cracked and deteriorating mortar joints.  In recent years the cracks had increased in size.  The district looked at having the the chimney repaired but after investigating found that the chimney was not longer in use.  The cost to demolish the chimney was less that estimated to have the chimney repaired.  The committee added the chimney demolition to the Year Three Project List.