Structural damage to cause temporary shutdown of N.P. Moss; read related story

Students will be relocated to other sites after break

Amanda Bedgood
12_13_2007


One of Lafayette Parish's newest schools could close for months and relocate roughly 500 students because of structural damage just eight years after the campus opened.

School officials maintain that N.P. Moss Middle School is safe for students, but that they must close the campus Jan. 8 to properly evaluate and repair what appears to be a water intrusion.

After the holiday break, eighth-graders will be moved to Northside High School and sixth- and seventh-grade students will go to Good Hope Baptist Church near the school on the corner of Willow Street and Teurlings Drive.

School Board president Carl LaCombe said they are preparing for the worst-case scenario - that the campus will close for the entire semester. Super-intendent Burnell Lemoine will meet with staff and parents today to answer any questions about the move.

"The first concern is the safety of the student and the next is to explain what is happening to the parents," Lemoine said.

Two classrooms have shown evidence of water intrusion. But, there are no estimates as to how much repairs could cost or how long those repairs could take because officials do not know the extent of the damage. It's damage that has been building for years, according to board member Mike Hefner. He said water is seeping from the outside into classrooms.

"It took awhile for enough moisture to build up and migrate through and, once it did, it was a conduit," Hefner said. "It only takes a matter of minutes now for the water to show up on the inside if there's any water on the outside."

Lemoine said in order to check rooms for damage, panels on the walls must be removed. Staff will also be examining the building's ventilation systems and wall structure.

Since the district discovered a moisture problem air samples have been taken to ensure indoor air quality. The results have been good and staff will continue to monitor air quality.

Board member Ed Sam said N.P. Moss damage adds to the district's facilities problems, just as school officials are working to find money to maintain and repair the majority of Lafayette campuses that are an average of 40 years old or more.

"I'm very concerned with that and I'm very surprised that a relatively new campus is having that type of problem," Sam said.

Hefner called the damage "disturbing."

"It's like moving into a new house and finding you have major structural problems," he said.

LaCombe said students will be moved to locations that can keep them in their neighborhoods, which will also require little transportation adjustments.

HOME