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Roof work at school wrapping up

Photo

Photo by Mark Kauzlarich

Workers from McDermaid’s Roofing and Insulating of Rockford, Ill., install a new roof on Jackson Elementary School on Janesville’s south side. The bid for the project was $395,559, and work was supposed to be complete last week.

JANESVILLE — What it is: A new roof for Jackson Elementary School, 441 Burbank Ave., on Janesville's south side.

Workers were expected to be done with the roof replacement late last week.

The problem: The 22-year-old roof might have allowed minor leaking from time to time, but nothing significant, said Keith Pennington, district CFO.

The roof was definitely at the end of its useful life, however. Officials took a look in May 2011 and found broken tiles, seals tearing away and weeds growing in the cracks.

The cost: The school board was hard-pressed to find funding for the project but eventually came up with the money. The bid price was $395,559.

Pennington said the new roof will be more energy-efficient, but it's impossible to estimate the savings.

The details: The new roof covers the older part of Jackson, about 70 percent of the building, Pennington said. It carries a 15-year warranty.

Pennington said the contractor, McDermaid Roofing and Insulating of Rockford, Ill., "has been an outstanding company to work with."

The school includes an addition that was completed in 2005. The addition did not need a new roof.

Finding funds for major maintenance projects continues to be a worry for the school board.

The next big project might be a replacement of the operable but aging boiler at Franklin Middle School, which is estimated to cost $1 million.