Cranford School Upgrades Coming in New Year

Several projects set forth by the Cranford Board of Education will be complete by the time school starts on Sept. 9, according to Business Administrator Bob Carfagno.

The gym floor at Cranford High School is already complete, Carfagno said at the Monday Board of Education meeting. While the science room at CHS is close to be doing, but isn’t quite there yet.

“We ran into every problem possible,” Carfagno said of the science room. “This was a tough one.”

He noted that these rooms were built in the 1930’s to 50’s and a lot of the electrical is in cement. However, they are hoping the room will be done by the first day of school. If not, it will only be a few days in and there is an alternate room for the classes until it is complete.

Board Member Trevor Shaw asked Carfagno if it would be possible for the board to visit the science room. Shaw explained the room is somewhat of a capstone project and he would really like to check it out. Carfagno said he would be happy to show any of the board members around to any of the updates made to the schools.

At the elementary level, new intercoms have been installed at Lincoln, Walnut, Livingston and Bloomfield, while a 911-phone system has also been installed at Brookside. Carfagno said the only thing left is to have staff trained on how to work the systems.

New card readers have been installed at all schools and the board is just working to program the new fobs.

Additionally, the lighting and ceiling tiles at Walnut have been replaced and the painting and ceiling tiles on the third floor of Lincoln have also been updated. The Board of Education meeting room also has a new paint job.

The latest project was discussed on Monday, which is the repair of a boiler at the High School. Currently, there are four boilers at CHS, two steam and two water. During inspections it was discovered that one of the steam boilers had a crack in it, so the board needs to make an emergency repair.

Since the school has four boilers, it is not an immediate need, but Carfagno said it is best to address the issue now so that it is in working order once the time comes where the school will need heat.

The boilers were installed in 2002 and can last 10 to 30 years. Carfagno said this is the second boiler they have had that was at the bottom of the life expectancy. Hopefully, with the repairs they can get 30 years out of it, he said. The Board awarded Manhattan Welding Company, Inc. the contract for the repairs in the amount of $28,800.

Cranford schools head back on Sept. 9. What are you NOT looking forward to now that the summer is ending?