Cooling towers at Hempfield Area High School are set to be replaced after school officials said the system is approaching failure.
School board members unanimously approved a motion last week to have Franklin Park-based McClure Company install two Baltimore Aircoil Company cooling towers at a cost not to exceed $262,155. Board member Sonya Brajdic was absent from the meeting.
The decision to move forward with the new cooling towers comes as a feasibility study is underway to determine if the high school, which was built in 1956, will be rebuilt or renovated.
The study will take up to nine months to compete. Renovation of the high school could take between two and three years and a rebuild would take about two years.
According to district business manager Wayne Wismar, the original goal was to maintain the cooling towers until a renovation or rebuild could take place.
But leaks were detected and repaired last year, and additional leaks were found in May of this year.
“These towers support the majority of the high school’s cooling system. Failure of the cooling system would negatively impact the learning environment,” Wismar said.
The towers are not expected to last until a renovation or rebuild project could be completed. He said the towers could be incorporated into a renovation or rebuild project, or would have value through the resale market.
Funds for the project will come out of the maintenance budget.
Installation is expected to begin in November.
