This summer, Wareham Middle School will undergo a partial roof replacement, Wareham Elementary School will get a drafty door fixed and Wareham High School will receive new water boilers, Facilities Director Erik Trahan told the School Committee at its meeting on Thursday, June 15.

Construction is set to begin immediately and should not disrupt summer school or programming, according to Trahan.

The first project will be the installation of new water boilers at Wareham High School, with the main construction expected to last two weeks.

In addition, valves will be installed on the sinks to prevent the water from getting too hot.

“The temperature of the water has to be reduced down to 110 [degrees Fahrenheit], legally,” he said, “so kids don’t obviously scald themselves when they go to wash their hands.”

Everything will be tested to ensure the system is ready for late fall, Trahan said.

The kitchen’s separate water heater will be prioritized by the construction team to minimize disruption of operations, he said.

According to Trahan, the cost of construction was estimated to be approximately $2.4 million, but this figure is now closer to approximately $1.6 million.

Wareham Middle School will receive a partial roof replacement. 

The sections of roof covering the school’s auditorium and a section of an adjacent hallway will be replaced.

New roof drains will be installed, and the top layer of old roofing, which is a single-ply membrane, as well as its insulation, will be removed and replaced. 

The old roofing below the membrane will be left undisturbed besides the removal of loose pieces, Trahan said. 

This project was estimated to cost approximately $1.5 million. However, the cost has become closer to approximately $1 million, according to Trahan.

He added that a complete roof replacement will take place during the summer of 2024.

“We put a big Band-Aid on it for now and it should hold for a couple years,” he said, “but the idea is if we have the grants and funds to replace it, we might as well just replace the whole thing.”

The entrance to the Wareham Elementary School kindergarten is missing a seal, allowing outside air to come into the classrooms. Now, kindergarten classrooms are “significantly” colder than the rest of the school, Trahan said.

Since this was a mistake made by the construction company, resealing the door will come at no cost to the district, according to Trahan.