Upkeep of o Wood School ls Low-budget ltem

(Il[any retail lumber dealers tod,ay are puslcing the construction of zaood schools in their towns to good. profit adaantage. It you haae been zuorking in your comrnunity witk sch,ool ofi,cials, ciaic leaders, board,s ol education, architects, etc., perkapi these two articles zuill furnish you with some aital ne.& enNlnunition.)

By Harry Fimmel, West Coast Lumbermen's Association

"In the four years that our wood school has been in operatiou, maintenance costs have been virtually nil. In fact. our only big expenditures have been $300 for staining the siding-not included in the original contract-and $125 for waterproofing concrete block work."

That is what Errol lfassell, superintendent of the Firgrove Elementary school at Beaverton, Oregon, has to say in answer to the popular misconception that wood schools are costly to maintain. And Hassell, as well as members of his school disfrict, is justly proud of the sleek and beautiful modern one-story wood school with all its latest educational facilities. Firgrove ii not a small school. The frame structure with wood siding exterior, and completely finished in wood on the interior, has hore than 20 classrooms, a gymnasium, auditorium and cafeteria.

All too often, individuals involved in new school construction programs are prone to eliminate consideration of wood buildings in their planning because of an over-exaggerated idea that maintenance costs on such structures are unreasonable. But in gathering statistics on the subject, the West Coast Lumbermen's Association has found that upkeep costs for schools of wood are no more than routine.

An analysis of maintenance points up the fact that the tvpe of construction or materials used is not a primary consideration. In school buildings, as in homes, the areas and surfaces subject to wear and direct use are the ones requiring maintenance. Hardware, plumbing fixtures, roofs and floors are among the principal items calling for upkeep and repair. Wood construction with its resulting economies permits purchase of the top quality brands of the high maintenance items, thereby assuring reasonable maintenance costs.

In going through records of another wood school, WCLA staffers found that maintenance of grounds was much more costly than any actual work on the school plant itself. This survey was made at the l0-year old elementary school in West IJnion, Oregon, a handsome structure with nine classrooms, a gymnasiurn and cafeteria situated on a 13-acre site.

Principal Paul A. Merriss, who made the study possible, pointed out that actual expenditures for maintenance of the wood structure, such as painting or replacing of wood, was only a minor consideration and the following breakdown of costs taken from the school's maintenance records for a five-year period bear him out:

Schools do not normallv keep such detailed cost records but it is interesting to note tie breakdown when records are kept as they are at this particular school.

A more economical job of building maintenance means the functional life of a school is increased and the best possible environment for teaching and learning can be provided over a long period.

Robert Llewellyn, superintendent of schools at Creswell, Oregon, has found maintenance costs for wood buildings so reasonable that he has been able to group two such structures under a single budget.

And the total expenditure is almost insignificant in comparison with spending for other aspects of education in that community.

The two schools at Creswell, both of wood, consist of one that has been in almost daily use since 1911, and another which was constructed and occupied in 1950. Although old in appearance, the two-story, lZ-classroom, frame structure has more than proven its usefulness through the years with a minimum of maintenance expense and a maximum of versatility. About the 20-classroom new school, Llewellyn says, "Maintenance on this building has taken only about $100 of the combined budget each year."

But the figures speak for themselves. Combined annual maintenance cost for the two schools as taken from the records is as follows: 1955-56, $484.50; 1956-57, $1,433.76; 1957-58, $500.00; 1958-59 (highest in the history of the school district), which is in a large part earmarked for refurbishing of the older building.

NLMA's first exhibit stressing the advantages of the modern wood school impressed members of thi National School Board Association at their meeting in Miami Beach, Florida, recently. The exhibit was noi only a first for NLMA but a first for the school board group is well. Until this_.year NSBA had not held a booth show at its meeting. Visitors crowded NLMA's exhibit to learn how to stretJh their school building dollars and to see how modern onestory wood schools are being constructed throughout the country. As a result, requests for NLMA's special kit on the construction of wood schools have been reaching NI MA's office daily. Many of the school administratori left requests at the booth to have the school kit sent to them.

Contained in the kit are folders and booklets showing how wood is used in schools and telling how the modern wood school can -save .taxpayers money. It is in keeping with the theme of the school exhibit, "More for Your-Mo=nev With the Modern Wood School."