FCAVTS moves forward with renovations
?GEORGES TWP. 鈥� The operating committee of the area vo-tech will move forward with a renovation plan that promises to use the cost savings of operating the deteriorating school to help pay for most of the projected $4.5 million in repairs the building needs.
Officials of the Fayette County Area Vocational-Technical School said they are spending about $250,000 annually on energy, maintenance and repairs to own and operate the building, which has about 37 holes in the roof and outdated heating and electrical systems.
The committee voted to move forward with the PA Act 39 Project, Guaranteed Energy Savings Agreement, a funding mechanism to help school districts generate capital from their existing operating budgets. According to Richard Phelps of Linc Facility Services of Canonsburg, who is coordinating the plan with the committee, PA Act 39 will allow the school鈥檚 officials to use utility savings the building would see after renovations and updates are complete to pay for the cost of the project over a 20-year span.
Last week, the operating committee agreed to hire Linc to conduct the final engineering plan for the project. According to Dr. Edward Jeffreys, Linc was the only organization to submit a request for proposal.
Phelps said the next step in the process is to design a solution that has to meet criteria, including addressing all the school鈥檚 needs, guaranteeing the annual energy savings within 5 percent plus or minus of $40,000 and operational cost of $70,000 and remain within the total project cost of $4.5 million, or $360,000 financed over 20 years.
鈥淭here are significant capital intensive needs at this school,鈥� Phelps said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 definitely doable.鈥�
Phelps said if the committee decides to do nothing, annual expenses will continue to increase as the school鈥檚 assets continue to degrade. He said, eventually, failures of systems could result, requiring immediate repairs or school closure.
With the Guaranteed Energy Savings program, the school would use $110,000 in energy and operational savings, leaving a balance of $250,000 to pay every year for the upgrades. That would be divided into annual payments from each school district with Albert Gallatin Area School District paying $54,300, Brownsville Area School District paying $26,500, Laurel Highlands School District paying $91,575 and Uniontown Area School District paying $77,625.
But Jeffreys said more adult educational programming will be offered, generating more revenue to help lessen the financial burden for each school district. Jeffreys predicts the adult education programs will generate anywhere from $1 million to $2 million annually within a few years. During last week鈥檚 meeting, the committee voted to increase the adult education programming and, for now, dedicate all profits to the renovation project.
According to Phelps鈥� figures, with $100,000 being added in from adult education programming revenue, the four sending districts鈥� portion of payment annually would be $150,000. That would calculate to an annual payment of $32,580 for Albert Gallatin, $15,900 for Brownsville, $54,945 for Laurel Highlands and $46,575 for Uniontown.
鈥淭his is a great way for them to address their infrastructural needs at a low cost to them,鈥� Phelps said.