Lincoln Street School roof in need of repair
By Ken Powers Contributing Writer

Northborough - The roof of the Lincoln Street School, in dire need of repair, will be examined by state officials in the next few weeks.

Charles Gobron, Northborough's acting superintendent of schools, made that announcement at the Northborough School Committee's Nov. 7 meeting.

"This is a very positive step," Gobron told the School Committee about just getting representatives from the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) to come out from Boston for a look. "Now if we can only get it to rain like it did yesterday when they come to evaluate the condition of the roof, we'll be all set."

Gobron was alluding to the torrential downpour the area endured Nov. 6, a pelting rain that caused Tom Maedler, maintenance supervisor of the Northborough Public Schools, to hustle through the building in an attempt to make sure all the leaks were documented and accounted for.

The impending visit by state officials is the latest step in an ongoing saga that began in June 2006 when Rosemary Joseph, the school superintendent at the time, was authorized by the School Committee to send a letter to the MSBA outlining improvements needed at the 40-year-old school, in the hope that the school district will get state funding for those repairs.

Included in the letter was a request for repairs to Lincoln Street School's heating system, as well as its roof.

In June, Gobron and School Committee Chair Cecil Adderley sent an updated statement of interest to the MSBA, asking that the roof of the Lincoln Street School be fasttracked up the list of projects requesting state funding.

In the June letter, Gobron explained that the urgent push was being made for the project because inspectors brought in to evaluate the roof estimated it could safely get through only one more New England winter.

Gobron confirmed at the Nov. 7 meeting that the roof is going to get repaired. It is Gobron's hope, however, and one shared by the School Committee, that the town can get confirmation in writing that the cost of work on the roof incurred by the school district will be reimbursed by the state.

Other news to come out of the Nov. 7 meeting included an update of the eff orts to shorten the time students at Peaslee School are waiting to be transported home by buses.

At the beginning of the school year, some students were waiting about 30 minutes to be picked up. Peaslee School Principal Don Holm said that time has been cut in half, but Gobron said that the time students are waiting is still about four minutes longer than the contract with the bus company allows.

Cheryl Levesque, business director for the school district, explained that the buses begin their afternoon runs at the high school and finish at the elementary schools, pointing out that any delays the buses experience on their earlier routes affects their pickup times at the elementary schools, most notably Peaslee, which is the only school experiencing delays.

Gobron said part of the reason for the delay is the time buses have to wait at the traffic signal at the intersection of Bartlett Street and Route 20 when transporting high school students. Gobron said he has met with Police Chief Mark Leahy and together they are considering filing a request with MassHighway for permission to change the light to a longer cycle during the afternoon to get buses on their way more quickly.