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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 2002)
Page 8 The INDEPENDENT, December 5, 2002 Seismic retrofitting might save kids, but the bricks will still fall From page 1 question, G otchall said that sometimes, new elements of the design renovation may not become effective until the old element has failed. The new el ement in a reinforced wall will not actually hold the load of the roof until the old element has fallen away. For example, a new structural steel and con crete wall would not hold up the roof until the old unreinforced masonry (brick) wall had fallen away. In the event of an earth quake the brick exterior of the building is still going to fall, ac cording to Gotchall. Comprehensive plans require an architect When board member Darrell Hamblet asked about the build ing being subject to other (than structural) upgrades to meet current code, Gotchall respond ed that an architect is needed to develop com prehensive plans that best meet the needs of the district. He also said that the WGS building could never be brought into total com pli ance with modern code re quirements. When asked why the high school was not includ ed in this study, Superintendent Mike Funderburg said that W GS is the building of concern now. Marie Botchie said that, in her experience, just because a building do e sn ’t meet code doesn’t mean it is unsafe. Gotchall explained that the safety factor at W GS is related to the composition of the unre inforced masonry (URM) walls and the connections between the structural elements of the roof, the floor and the founda tion. Gotchall’s report says that, “In terms of seismic risk, this type of building is found to be most hazardous.” He described the construction as “very brittle” and having little strength to transfer loads, such as the shaking of an earthquake or heavy rain or snow, from the roof to the ground. Asked if there were some modifications that could be made for relative ly low cost, Gotchall responded that anchors to attach the walls more securely to the roof and foundation would increase the factor of safety. Methods same as prior engineering study When asked about how he conducted his study, Gotchall answ ered that he had per formed his work in the same way as the previous engineer. Since interior finishes hide nearly all of the structural ele ments, his conclusions are “statements of structural engi neering judgments based sole ly on visual observation from a cursory walk-through of the ex isting facilities, information col lected from existing drawings, and a simplistic seismic analy sis.” When asked about the re cently discovered dry-rot, Gotchall said that determining the amount of dry-rot in an ex isting structure is extremely dif ficult without actually tearing the building apart. The same information was in previous reports given to the board and the long-range facili ties planning group, Michelle Blum noted, plus information about unsafe and inadequate buildings at the high school. She said that, while the recent ly passed seismic safety meas ure for public buildings may eventually provide funds for this type of renovation, it is cur rently unfunded and likely to re main so in light of the state’s budget crisis. Reading from a document she prepared and is circulating in the community, Blum said a first hand review of the facts in previous reports and the post-bond measure survey, indicate to her that the public did not have the informa tion they needed to support the previous bond measure. Blum makes a passionate appeal to the public (See Letter to the Ed itor) that money spent on fixing a portion of the problem is wasted. $2 million would get job started, not finished Gotchall’s report includes an estimate of almost $2 million as the cost of structural seismic renovation. He said the esti mate does not include “any ar chitectural items or finishes, m echanical or electrical im provements, and other items, which should be evaluated in conjunction with any structural improvements.” Gotchall said that he is currently involved in the seismic rehabilitation and remodel of a junior high school in Estacada that is similar in size, layout and type of con struction. The final cost for the project, including structural, ar chitectural, m echanical and electrical improvements, will be $5-6 m illion. According to Gotchall, Newburg is currently seeking bids for a new elemen tary of the same size as WGS what they would support. Hamblet said the previous bond didn't have much input or discussion at various churches, civic groups, etc., but teacher llene Grady questioned this, pointing out that she, and oth ers, were out in the community working hard for passage of the bond. Hamblet responded that the board needed the confi dence of the community, that the bond was the most reason able solution. Isabelle M c Daniel said that many people just didn’t feel they had the money to support a bond with an added tax burden. She said that many senior citizens are especially inclined to think of the dollars first. Botchie also said that she had heard people say that they just didn’t have the money for a bond. in the $8 million range. Without public support, nothing will be done Following G otchall’s report, board chairman Carla Strand opened a general discussion with the audience and said that the board needed the consen sus of the community to move forw ard. Blum pressed the board to answer the question, “W hat does consensus look like to you?” Strand directed Blum and Botchie to engage in discussion with board member Cari Levenseller, who recently attended a workshop on how to obtain and use com munity sup port for bond measures, but was unable to attend the No vem ber 21 m eeting. 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