At the request of the Roslyn School District Board of Education, BJLJ Engineers, a Mineola-based firm has recently conducted a comprehensive building survey of each school in the district.

The firm has identified up to $13 million in needed repair costs for both interior and exterior renovations on all district buildings. At the least, the report claims that $11 million in repair costs are needed to bring the district up to date with state safety codes.

According to the BJLJ report, the purpose of the survey was to "evaluate each facility and make recommendations for corrective work in order to maintain a safe, comfortable, energy efficient and stable structure, while decreasing the rate of deterioration."

In every school that was inspected, roof replacement emerged as a major cost in the firm's report. For instance, at Harbor Hills Elementary School, total renovation cost estimates were listed at $2,917,500. The estimated cost for roof replacement was listed as $664,000.

Other cost estimates at Harbor Hills included window replacement ($300,000), parking redesign ($350,000), interior doors ($172,000), control systems ($150,000), and new tennis courts ($100,000).

At Heights Elementary School, the renovation costs estimates reached $2,214,350, with roof replacement numbers totaling $460,000. Other costs estimates at the Heights were playground/playground curb ($120,000), window replacement ($225,000), and asphalt/concrete pavement ($183,000).

In addition, renovation costs at East Hills Elementary School were estimated at $3,358,200. Of that total, roof replacement was estimated at $505,000. Other items of note included window replacement ($750,000), floor finishes ($210,000), and interior door replacement ($135,000).

At the Roslyn Middle School, BJLJ engineers estimated the renovation costs at $3,952,850. Roof replacement estimates were listed as $474,700. The report also recommended renovations concerning the running track ($500,000), asphalt/concrete pavement ($550,000), window repair/replacement ($225,000), and ceiling replacement ($167,500).

Finally, at Roslyn High School, renovation costs were estimated at $9,160,550. There, roof replacement numbers were $1,568,500, with ceiling replacement listed at $497,500.

Other estimated renovation costs at the high school included window replacement ($600,000), asphalt/concrete pavement ($520,000), boiler replacement ($440,000), unit ventilators ($490,000), and gymnasium bleachers ($300,000).

The report also listed estimated renovation costs for Building Blocks, the Administration Building, and the Maintenance Building.

Estimated repair costs at Building Blocks totaled $547,000, with only $25,000 for roof replacement.

At the Administration Building, the costs were estimated at $919,200, while repair costs at the Maintenance Building were listed at $589,100.

BJLJ conducted its report by interviewing district staff and building personnel about the conditions at each building, and how they related to such aspects as operational and maintenance difficulties, appearance, functionality, comfort, ventilation, safety, and acoustics, among others.

Engineers and architects from BJLJ also conducted their own walking tours and inspections of the buildings, rating them as they related to architecture, structural integrity, electrical systems, plumbing systems, mechanical systems, and fire safety.

Renovation priorities were listed in terms of New York State safety codes, infrastructure priority, infrastructure pending, and improvements.

According to the report, cost estimates were made based on data and experience of construction costs for the Roslyn area.

"The values indicate how facilities should be repaired, replaced, or upgraded based on reliability, efficiency and safety," the report stated. "Existing equipment, which is operating satisfactory....is normally recommended to be retained with routine maintenance by facilities staff....In cases where existing equipment is very old, unreliable, inefficient, with short life expectancy, we [BJLJ] normally recommend to replace or repair the equipment or system with newer or modern equipment or systems. The cost estimates to repair or replace such equipment are based on equipment and related materials price, labor, and other contingencies necessary for safe and effective construction and demolition."

BJLJ personnel especially took the ages of the buildings in the district into consideration when drafting the report.

"Although age is frequently a sign of the condition of a building, the quality of construction and planned maintenance are the major influences on building condition," the report stated, while adding that the age of buildings in the Roslyn School District range from those recently constructed to 103 years of age, with the average age of a building in the 50-60 years old category.

"As with any building of this vintage, maintenance escalates when not properly enforced," the report continued. "Each year, the District must make repairs and/or upgrade the existing facilities infrastructure."

Finally, the report states that its findings are simply a first step in any renovation process. "This report should be viewed as a working document....subject to additional input...as a result of exploration of additional information, issues, and resolution of questions and concerns raised by all interested parties."