There is major project coming to Johnson Avenue this summer. And if officials with the Harrison County Board of Education can make it happen, it will only take place during the summer months.

 

According to Harrison County Schools Assistant Superintendent of Transportation and Facilities Jimmy Lopez, Bridgeport Middle School will be the location of the project. And he said it very likely will come with a seven-figure price tag.

 

The project in question is replacing most of the roof. A mandatory pre-bid meeting was held March 15 at the school with four contractors in attendance.

 

“We’re going to do a full replacement of all the flat roof, because there’s some metal roofing,” said Lopez. “I believe it’s original to the building. It’s actually held up pretty well. I don’t think there’s anything major as far as problems, but there has been a few minor issues. If you wait too long, they’re going to become a major problem. There are more than one roof coming to the end of their lives in the county.”

 

The last part of Lopez’s comments is not hyperbole. He said both Liberty and Robert C. Byrd High Schools will have roof replacements in the months ahead. Those will be complete replacements.

 

“Those are bigger ones, but this is a substantial job,” said Lopez. “This will be a seven-figure project.”

 

The plan is to have the work done once school is out of session. However, that is not a certainty.

 

“(Work) can be done during school hours,” said John Jefferis, CCM, a project manager with McKinley Architecture and Engineering. Jefferis handled the pre-bid meeting and McKinley is the consultant handling the project.

 

A lot of what happens depends on two things. First, there is a possibility that one contractor could win all three jobs or even two of the jobs. If that happens, a scheduling system may have to be put in place to best avoid interrupting student work if labor has to be done during the school year.

 

The second is the ongoing issue with getting supplies. While Lopez said that is improving, he said the insulation needed, particularly for areas of roofs that have a pitch, is not easy to get.

 

“I don’t think we’ll do all of them in the summer, but that’s what we would prefer. We’ll make it so it won’t have any impact on the students in their learning environment,” said Lopez. “We know we can a lot of this after school hours and work at the convenience of the school as to not interrupt instruction or create any type of safety issue.”

 

More than 92,000 square feet of roofing will be replaced. Bids will be received until 1 p.m. on April 4. The bids will be opened at the Administration Offices of the Harrison County Board of Education on Main Street in Clarksburg.

 

Editor's Note: Harrison County Schools Assistant Superintendent of Transportation and Facilities Jimmy Lopez talks to contractors at the pre-bid meeting, while John Jefferis, CCM, a project manager with McKinley Architecture and Engineering, goes over the project during the same meeting.