2019 Report: Maintenance of Maryland’s Public School Buildings. MCPS "semi-annual roof assessments were not being completed... and relocatables appear positioned too close together..."

STATE OF MARYLAND INTERAGENCY COMMISSION ON SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION FY 2019 Annual Report October 1, 2019

From the Report on Page 40:

MONTGOMERY COUNTY

Thirty-nine schools were assessed in April and
May 2019. Original existing square footage at
these schools range from 1936 to 2017, with
adjusted building ages ranging from 2 years to
49 years. Eleven of the schools assessed this
year had an adjusted building age of 30 or more
years.
Montgomery County Public Schools is the
largest school system in Maryland with 210
school facilities totaling 24,510,372 square
feet.
This year, roofing conditions seemed to need
additional attention as 14 of the 39 assessed
schools received Not Adequate or Poor scores
for this category. It appeared that the required
semi-annual roof assessments were not being
completed or were not completed accurately. If
routine assessments of the roof and other
areas throughout the buildings were performed
more often or thoroughly, MCPS would likely
identify and prevent many of the deficiencies
found during the IAC assessments.

The setup of the newer relocatable classrooms,
like those at Clarksburg Elementary, is of
concern as well. The downspouts are not being
extended down and diverted away from the
structures; this allows water to flow down the
siding and the wood to rot more quickly. In
addition, the relocatables appear positioned
too close together—approximately 1-3 inches
apart—allowing the elements to enter the
space which will slowly rot out the siding and
cause other potential issues, but also be
inaccessible to maintenance personnel unless
the walls are removed from the inside. This will
eventually become costly to repair and require
funding repairs that could and should have
been prevented.

http://iac.maryland.gov/Reports/FY%202019%20Maintenance%20Survey%20Report.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery