Palmerton Area School District took the first step Tuesday to addressing roofing issues at S.S. Palmer Elementary School.

Palmerton’s board of directors accepted a proposal from NT Associates Inc. to undertake $11,800 worth of repairs on a portion of the school’s roof.

According to Dr. Jodi Frankelli, Palmerton superintendent, concerns arose about persistent leaks from the roof.

“It seemed to be pervasive in some areas to the point of things getting a little worse than just your stained ceiling tile,” she said earlier this month.

To assess the extent of the problem representatives from NT Associates Inc., accompanied by Palmerton director Earl Paules, conducted a visual inspection of the roof several weeks ago.

The roof, featuring a rubber membrane with stone surfacing, has held up for 22 years. However, issues arose with the roof’s penetrations when heat and air conditioning systems were added, leading to insufficient sealing and water intrusion, Paules said.

“It’s a good roof,” he told fellow board members. “It isn’t the same design they use today. When they put the heat and air conditioning up there, it wasn’t sealed well.”

A complete overhaul of the affected area, including roof drain replacement, was estimated to cost $58,000 and Pennsylvania’s 2023 public project bidding threshold of $22,500 posed a challenge.

“That would be a big delay because it would have to go out for bid,” Paules said. “And when you have to go with a low bid, sometimes you get what you pay for. You don’t fool around with a roof. It can cost you a lot of money if it isn’t done right.”

Instead, NT Associates devised a cost-effective plan in collaboration with the school district, amounting to just under $12,000, which remained within the bidding threshold. The focus of these repairs centers on the most critical areas of the roof that demand immediate attention. The strategy, while not a comprehensive fix, is anticipated to extend the roof’s life span by a decade or more, according to Paules.

“We have to get it done by the holidays,” Paules said. “Right now is the prime time to do it. We’re focusing on the area of the roof that is the most immediate need right now. If we patch it up, we could get 10 or 15 more years out of it.”

The district is hopeful it can include the remainder of its roof work in a larger S.S. Palmer renovation project.

In addition to addressing the roofing concerns, the school district also accepted a change order from TK Elevator Corporation on Tuesday. It includes additional labor for the reinspection of an elevator at S.S. Palmer and the replacement of hydraulic oil compromised because of water intrusion. The additional cost to the district for these elevator-related repairs is $7,800.

Frankelli noted that while there is no certainty that the roof issues directly caused the elevator problems, addressing the roof’s condition is an important step toward resolving potential underlying issues.