breaking: Capital HS to open on schedule this September

This just in, from Capital's principal, Nancy Faaren, via email:

June 5, 2009

Dear Capital High School Students, Staff and Families:

As you can imagine, all of us at Capital have been eager to hear the results of the tests on the roof trusses so that we can begin to move forward. Earlier this week, officials from the Olympia School District and I met with our structural engineer to hear their preliminary conclusions based on the tests they have performed thus far on the trusses. Here is what we know as of today:

• Capital High School will operate as scheduled for the 2009-2010 school year. Our first day of school will be September 9th, the same as all the other schools in the District.
• Contractors will work during the summer to finish repairs on the library and visual communications rooms. They will also complete the finish work throughout the school that was left over from the repairs this winter. At this point, we anticipate that all of this work will be completed before the first day of school.
• Contractors will reinforce the gussets that support the roof trusses in several areas. The structural engineers have not definitively determined all of the factors that may have led to the roof collapse. Obviously, the extreme weight of the record heavy snowfall caused the failure. It also appears some of the trusses were not constructed as designed, hence the work this summer to reinforce some of the gussets. The posts that were built as part of the roof repair work this winter will remain in place as an additional precaution to provide extra support under the heaviest mechanical units.
• Based on the test results, the Olympia School District will be working with the City of Olympia to amend the occupancy permit to allow Capital High School to remain open with a snow load of approximately 5 inches. This would bring us in line with the rest of the schools in the District as past practice has been to close schools when snow accumulations reach that level (or many times, less than 5 inches).
• As an additional precaution, the Olympia School District is reviewing the feasibility of installing a snow melting system on the roof, similar to one that is used on buildings with flat roofs in the mountain passes. We will know more about this in the weeks ahead.

The long term plan for the roof is still under development. Tests on the remaining trusses will be completed this week. We expect to have a final report and recommendations from the structural engineers in the next couple of weeks. As soon as I receive that report, I will make sure it is posted to our Capital High School website for your review.

Once we have received the report and recommendations, we will work with District staff to evaluate the options for any remaining work that will need to take place to permanently fix the roof.

That we could be open on time, and on as normal a schedule as is roofly possible, is a relief.

thoughts about the roof collapse

Over four months later, Capital High School continues to live in suspense.

We are still waiting to hear the results of the tests to the CHS roof trusses that collapsed on Christmas Day. We expect that these results will include recommendations from the structural engineers as to how to proceed with a permanent repair to the roof. As soon as we receive some information about these tests, we will share it with our CHS community. Thank you for your patience.

If you've followed the story, you know that CHS has been a little out of sorts since the roof collapsed, dealing with missed school--including cancellations two hours into the school day--and an overall sense of uncertainty compounded by the roiling financial situation and swine flu outbreak.

Despite all that, we can consider ourselves fortunate that the roof collapsed when the building was empty, so that no one sustained injury. Today's news out of the Dallas Cowboys training camp in Irving, Texas put this fact in sharp relief.

Winds that were just shy of tornado strength, and perhaps stronger, ripped through the roof during a rookie minicamp practice, essentially popping the so-called bubble. Between the falling debris and the furor to get out, special teams coach Joe DeCamillis broke his back and 11 more people were hospitalized.

About 60 others felt lucky to escape with only cuts and bruises....

The no-frills building was pretty much a 100-yard football field with a few more yards of clearance all the way around. The roof was 80 feet high, the equivalent of an eight-story building.

On Saturday, there were 27 players -- almost all drafted last weekend or signed as undrafted rookies -- working out when the storm hit. Also in the building were coaches, support staff and media.

Overhead lights swayed violently, prompting players, coaches, staff members and reporters to vacate the building. Several people were trying to exit the facility as the roof came down at about 4:30 p.m. ET.

Yesterday I greeted the "trusses are still being tested" announcement with a dissatisfied groan.

Not today.

breaking news: CHS may now stay open in light snow

This just in from the boss:

Today Tim Byrne worked with the city and reached an agreement that we could hold school at Capital with more than a dusting of snow on our roof. School will be closed if there is more than two inches of snow.

In March, what are the chances?

(Please don't answer that question. Thanks.)

roof collapse leads to mysterious Public Records Request

This crawled into my email inbox this afternoon, via Peter Rex, the communications guru for the Olympia School District:

Earlier this week, we received a public records request for any documents, emails, reports or correspondence related to the roof collapse at Capital High School. Under state law, citizens have the right to request any document that we produce as public employees. Failure to comply with the request can lead to significant financial penalties for the District.

The request is for any emails, reports, correspondence or other documents that you have relating to the roof collapse for the period of January 8 through March 10, 2009....

I would like to have all documents to me no later than Tuesday, March 31st so I can process them and run any questions I have by our legal counsel.

I understand that this is an inconvenience and not the most productive use of your time, but I do appreciate your cooperation. Call me if you have any questions.

Thank you.

I have reviewed the (very few) emails I sent about the collapse. They are uniformly boring.

I'd love to know what the request is about, but I'm willing to live in suspense for now.

Bonus: Read the latest info on the collapse here [pdf].

$7 million roof repair tab; also, no WASL for freshfolks

Initial estimates for repair costs for Capital's collapsed roof run into the meeelions.

"The $7 million figure is the best estimate by our insurers of the potential magnitude of the claim so far," district spokesman Peter Rex said.

However, that won't necessarily cover the entire amount of what it would cost to rebuild the roof and the school's library, which was gutted after the roof collapsed on Christmas Day. District officials won't know the final cost of the reconstruction until they find out what caused the roof to collapse and who is financially liable, Rex said.

It is unknown why a truss supporting the roof failed after a heavy snowstorm, and district officials said last month that it could be several months before the cause is known. Damage might not be repaired until fall, they said.

On Monday, the district will hold a public hearing before the board amends the district's 2008-09 budget to accommodate $7 million in emergency expenses related to the roof collapse.

Thank goodness for insurance. Of course, costs can be expected to climb...

Which brings us to the second budget-related item, the cancellation of the 9th-grade WASL.

State schools chief Randy Dorn eliminated giving freshmen the option of taking the test, part of an effort to save nearly $500,000, his office announced Wednesday night.

Tenth-graders still are required to take the test, as are third- through eighth-graders and some high school juniors and seniors.

Dorn said last month that he will revamp the entire testing system by next year in favor of shorter exams with faster feedback.

It makes sense and it saves money. Dorn's not perfect, but he's made some good choices so far.