NVUSD Receives Nearly $1 Million for Seismic Upgrades

News from the Napa Valley Unified School District:

Following a hearing June 30 at the State Allocation Board in Sacramento, Napa Valley Unified School District will receive $951,423 to reimburse the district for seismic upgrade work completed at Bel Aire Park Elementary School and Vintage High School in August 2013.

The State Board had authorized the funds in August 2014, four days before the South Napa Earthquake, but because the State Department of Industrial Relations did not receive some required paperwork in a timely manner, the district was in danger of losing the grant money due to non-compliance with requirements regarding paying prevailing wages on construction projects. NVUSD appealed the question at Tuesday’s hearing and the appeal was granted.

It is expected that NVUSD will receive the funds in July.

“These funds go a long way in helping us to be proactive in our safety upgrades for our students and staff at our schools,” said NVUSD Superintendent Patrick Sweeney. “Once we have this reimbursement in hand, we can look to moving forward with more of the 15 projects on our seismic upgrade projects list.”

Don Evans, head of school planning and construction at NVUSD, said, “We have always required that prevailing wages and benefits be paid on our projects. The issue was one of timely paperwork to prove our compliance.”

Before Tuesday’s hearing, when it appeared the district appeal may not be successful, local legislators Sen. Lois Wolk and Assemblyman Bill Dodd intervened to plead the district’s case, emphasizing the importance of student safety and the lack of other sources of State funding for upgrades.

“We are grateful to Lois Wolk and Bill Dodd for their help,” Sweeney said. “That local presence at the State level was instrumental for us.”

The funds, which come from the SAB’s Seismic Mitigation grant program, were used during summer 2013 to seismically rehabilitate five classroom buildings at Vintage High School, and four classroom buildings, the library and administrative areas at Bel Aire Park Elementary.

Both campuses performed very well in the Aug. 24, 2014, earthquake, with very little damage. Total damages across the district’s 30 sites are estimated at several million dollars, including more work at Vintage High School.

The district will present an updated Facilities Master Plan to the Napa Valley Board of Education in July.

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