Post by Moses on Jan 2, 2006 0:18:29 GMT -5
This just says it all about our current value system. We spend billions on sports stadiums, and give public moneys to sports moguls. But we build our schools on construction dumps. And the Mass pols think TESTING KIDS is the way to improve education? I say let's start testing the grown-ups.
School building method faulted
According to the Daily Item repairs will cost between $15 and $20 million and the school will be closed for 18 months. Here is a description of what the architectural/engineering firms failed to do.
By Kathy McCabe
Lynn Classical High School is sinking into the ground six years after completion because it was built without the proper foundation on an old construction dump, according to a new engineering report.
The foundation, put on a slab of concrete over the capped landfill, has caused walls to crumble, floors to crack, and utility pipes to rupture, among other problems at the 120,000-square-foot school on O'Callaghan Way in West Lynn, the report said.
The damage ''is a direct result of this choice of slab-on-grade," according to the report prepared for the city by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger Inc., a national engineering firm with an office in Waltham.
Slab-on-grade is a type of foundation built with a concrete pad on soil. At Classical, the slab is supported by steel pilings driven into land filled with wood, sheetrock, and other construction materials dumped there decades ago. Those materials are now decomposing faster than expected, causing the building to sink, the report said.
Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. said he is not surprised by the findings. ''It proves to us that this school was badly designed," said Clancy, who did not hold office when the school was designed and built. ''That said, there will be no easy solution to how we fix this."
A second report by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger will outline the amount of time and money it will take to correct the problems at Classical, which opened in 2001. The $40 million school, with a capacity of 1,500 students, was paid for with 90 percent state funding.
Architect Symmes, Maini & McKee Inc. of Cambridge and GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. of Norwood did not properly assess the risk involved in building the school on the former dump site, even though materials are buried deep in the ground, the report said.
''It is our opinion that the design team bears the responsibility for the observed settlement-related damage to the school building . . . and utility lines . . . due to inappropriate foundation design," the report states.
Tim Grobleski, executive vice president of Symmes Maini & McKee Inc., said of the report, ''We are reviewing it and will work cooperatively with the city of Lynn to make sure there is a resolution to the problem."
A manager at GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. declined to comment on the report. ''We'll be in further communication with the city," said William H. Hover, the office manager at the firm's Norwood headquarters.
The city filed a lawsuit against Symmes Maini & McKee, GZA GeoEnvironmental, and other firms involved in the design and construction of the school building. The report's findings could prompt the city to drop some from the litigation. ''It appears the number of defendants may be more limited," Clancy said.
The engineering report, made public last week, followed more than a year of study by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger. The firm reviewed the project's contracts, timeline, and construction plans. The school was built in 1997-1998. The report called the old dump a ''poor choice" for the school's construction. [Who chose the site, then?]
It is unclear how the school will be fixed, but plans are in the works to relocate students, faculty, and staff during construction. One option would split the school in half, with freshmen and sophomores attending the old Classical High on Lynn Common and juniors and seniors going to Lynn Vocational Technical Institute. The School Committee must still approve the plan, however.
Putting up portable classrooms at the Lynn campus of North Shore Community College, which would allow Classical High to stay together, is another option. Clancy met recently with Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and state education officials to discuss possible state funding for the project.
''Both have signaled they would help us," Clancy said.
Brenda J. Buote of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com.
— Kathy McCabe
Boston Globe
2006-01-01
School building method faulted
According to the Daily Item repairs will cost between $15 and $20 million and the school will be closed for 18 months. Here is a description of what the architectural/engineering firms failed to do.
By Kathy McCabe
Lynn Classical High School is sinking into the ground six years after completion because it was built without the proper foundation on an old construction dump, according to a new engineering report.
The foundation, put on a slab of concrete over the capped landfill, has caused walls to crumble, floors to crack, and utility pipes to rupture, among other problems at the 120,000-square-foot school on O'Callaghan Way in West Lynn, the report said.
The damage ''is a direct result of this choice of slab-on-grade," according to the report prepared for the city by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger Inc., a national engineering firm with an office in Waltham.
Slab-on-grade is a type of foundation built with a concrete pad on soil. At Classical, the slab is supported by steel pilings driven into land filled with wood, sheetrock, and other construction materials dumped there decades ago. Those materials are now decomposing faster than expected, causing the building to sink, the report said.
Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. said he is not surprised by the findings. ''It proves to us that this school was badly designed," said Clancy, who did not hold office when the school was designed and built. ''That said, there will be no easy solution to how we fix this."
A second report by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger will outline the amount of time and money it will take to correct the problems at Classical, which opened in 2001. The $40 million school, with a capacity of 1,500 students, was paid for with 90 percent state funding.
Architect Symmes, Maini & McKee Inc. of Cambridge and GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. of Norwood did not properly assess the risk involved in building the school on the former dump site, even though materials are buried deep in the ground, the report said.
''It is our opinion that the design team bears the responsibility for the observed settlement-related damage to the school building . . . and utility lines . . . due to inappropriate foundation design," the report states.
Tim Grobleski, executive vice president of Symmes Maini & McKee Inc., said of the report, ''We are reviewing it and will work cooperatively with the city of Lynn to make sure there is a resolution to the problem."
A manager at GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. declined to comment on the report. ''We'll be in further communication with the city," said William H. Hover, the office manager at the firm's Norwood headquarters.
The city filed a lawsuit against Symmes Maini & McKee, GZA GeoEnvironmental, and other firms involved in the design and construction of the school building. The report's findings could prompt the city to drop some from the litigation. ''It appears the number of defendants may be more limited," Clancy said.
The engineering report, made public last week, followed more than a year of study by Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger. The firm reviewed the project's contracts, timeline, and construction plans. The school was built in 1997-1998. The report called the old dump a ''poor choice" for the school's construction. [Who chose the site, then?]
It is unclear how the school will be fixed, but plans are in the works to relocate students, faculty, and staff during construction. One option would split the school in half, with freshmen and sophomores attending the old Classical High on Lynn Common and juniors and seniors going to Lynn Vocational Technical Institute. The School Committee must still approve the plan, however.
Putting up portable classrooms at the Lynn campus of North Shore Community College, which would allow Classical High to stay together, is another option. Clancy met recently with Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey and state education officials to discuss possible state funding for the project.
''Both have signaled they would help us," Clancy said.
Brenda J. Buote of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com.
— Kathy McCabe
Boston Globe
2006-01-01