On January 5, 2017, Spooner Area School District (SASD) Superintendent John Burnett announced the closing of the Spooner Middle School small gym, and released the following prepared statement:
“During the course of the past three school years, the middle school small gymnasium has undergone several inspections in order to ensure that the facility remains safe for student and community use. However, on Monday, January 2nd, under the recommendations of our contracted structural engineer, it became necessary to close the small gymnasium until further inspections could be completed. The SASD recognizes that this facility's closure impacts athletic scheduling and the middle school's Physical Education classes, but this step was necessary to ensure all students', staff and community members' safety.”
The Spooner Middle School's small gym was constructed in 1940. SASD's Middle School Principal Brad Larabee stated to DrydenWire.com, “the facility is in great condition for being 77 years old. However, due to its age, it has begun to show wear and tear caused by age.”
The brick on the north and south walls of the gymnasium are displaying deterioration due to years of exposure to northern Wisconsin's changing weather conditions and moisture.
In 2014, the Spooner Middle School (SMS) received water damage, but Larabee says that the recent closing of the small gym is unconnected to that event.
"In July 2014 the middle school experienced minimal water damage caused by heavy rains during the reconstruction of the north hallway running between the Antholz and small gymnasiums." said Larabee. "At that time a small portion of the small gymnasium's floor was repaired. The recent closure of the small gym is unrelated to the damage caused by the flooding."
Larabee went on to say that the construction firm Market & Johnson was working on the reconstruction of the middle school's north hallway during July of 2014. Market & Johnson noted the deterioration in the small gym and recommended the SASD have a structural architect inspect the gym to assess it's condition and advise the SASD on necessary repairs.
“In August of 2014 Erickson Rhoed & Associates (ERA), out of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, was contracted to perform an inspection of the small gym,” said Larabee. “Following their inspection ERA deemed the gym as being safe for use under continued annual inspection, repair of the building's egress and development of a plan for repair or replacement of the structure over the next five years.”
An additional inspection was performed by ERA in November 2016 to evaluate the condition of the small gym's roof. This inspection revealed that in its current condition the roof of the Middle School's small gym can only bear the weight of a maximum snow load of 24 inches on any part of the roof. The ERA further advised that continued monitoring and removal of any snow load is vital.
“At the January 2nd Building and Grounds Committee meeting the Board of Education discussed the inspection results and gave the directive to close the facility until a plan for snow removal and consultation with the District's insurance company could occur,” said Larabee. “This decision was made to ensure the safety of all District students, staff and community members.”
In an effort to safely re-open the small gymnasium, the SASD's administrative and custodial teams have been working together to find options for the necessary snow removal and have met with SASD's insurance company.
Larabee concluded by saying, “The Building and Grounds Committee has brought this decision to the full Board of Education for further discussion at the January 16th Board of Education meeting.”
Last Update: Jan 09, 2017 7:55 am CST
