Officials Seek Roof Replacement at Junior High School South Before 1984 Warranty Expiration-October 29, 1982

School Committee and Selectmen Press Bonding Company Over Persistent Leaks

Town officials are aggressively investigating options to replace the chronically leaky roof at Junior High School South before its 10-year warranty expires in 1984. The school department has formally urged the Board of Selectmen to demand that the bonding company insuring the roof either fund a complete replacement or grant an extended warranty.

School Committee member Roger M. Pelletier—who also serves on the permanent building construction committee—revealed that the roof has leaked persistently almost since the day the school was constructed. While the bonding company has acknowledged the defects and covered the costs of frequent patchwork over the years, Pelletier emphasized that patching is no longer sufficient: “We’ve got to cover ourselves now. The roof hasn’t performed well to any degree.”

Pelletier explained that waterproof insulation frequently breaks loose, allowing water to penetrate and damage interior ceiling tiles and walls—a destructive cycle that worsens when trapped water freezes and causes further insulation to fracture. Although the exact root cause remains undetermined, Pelletier noted that the bonding company closely supervised the original construction to ensure proper installation standards were met. If the warranty is not extended to cover a replacement, the town would face substantial out-of-pocket repair costs, though total estimates have not yet been calculated.

Mystery Surrounds High Utility Costs at Junior High School South Versus North

In addition to the roofing crisis, Pelletier called for a comprehensive municipal study to determine why utility costs at Junior High School South are nearly double those of Junior High School North, despite the two educational facilities being nearly identical in architecture.

The significant cost discrepancy has baffled town officials for several years. While Junior High School South features central air-conditioning and lighted athletic ballfields, Pelletier noted that those factors account for only a small fraction of the vast utility expenditure gap between the twin buildings.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger