Dist. 15 spells out costs for upkeep

Palatine Township Elementary District 15 has pinpointed, down to the dollar, what building maintenance is needed and where.

Digging up the dollars to pay for any of it is proving a much bigger challenge.

The district's five-year building plan spelled out $19.9 million in upgrades for the span from the 2006-07 school year to 2010-11.

Most of the work from last year is done, paid for with a board-approved $5 million bond. But none of the projects slotted for the current school year has been addressed, the biggest being a $900,000 new roof for Carl Sandburg Junior High.

That's because the school board couldn't agree on the financing.

Board member Tim Millar hopes the upcoming school year will be different, but the window of opportunity is closing. Most work would need to happen this summer, and with just two regular meetings left, time is short.

"It's going to be very challenging to get anything done because we still need to get the bids out, review them and approve them," said Millar.

Should funding materialize, Lake Louise and Sandburg schools are slated for about $1.7 million each over five years for plumbing, new roofs, mechanical equipment and other work. Pleasant Hill School has been allotted $1.6 million for projects that include a $1.2 million roof.

Fortunately, District 15's 20 schools are generally in good shape, said Craig Phillips, manager of environmental services. They benefited from a $64 million facelift funded by a 1988 referendum.

"We're trying to be proactive with the structures that exhibit deterioration," he said. "But anything I've identified is subject to financing and board action."

It'll soon be evident what, if any, action the board takes. The finance and architectural committees will meet in coming weeks to try to hatch a plan. They'll have to get creative, considering a tentative 2008-09 budget was approved earlier this year -- absent any capital projects.

District 15 building maintenance needs

Estimated cost of building upgrades identified in district's plan for next four years

Central Road $200,000

C.L.A. $100,000

Hunting Ridge $600,000

Jane Addams $1 million

Jefferson $300,000

Kimball Hill $300,000

Lake Louise $1.7 million

Lincoln $1.3 million

Marion Jordan $1.2 million

Paddock $1.2 million

Pleasant Hill $1.6 million

Plum Grove $900,000

Sanborn $700,000

Sandburg $1.7 million

Sundling $800,000

Virginia Lake $200,000

Whiteley $500,000

Willow Bend $300,000

Winston Campus $300,000

Total $14.9 million

Source: Palatine Township Elementary District 15