ENTERPRISE — Emergency roof repairs are planned for this month at the Enterprise School after a leak was discovered and the school district’s board of directors decided Sept. 22 to have the work done before winter, according to a press release.

The board approved an emergency roof-repair contract with Eagle Cap Construction of La Grande during a special meeting. The work was deemed necessary since the planned roof replacement under a school bond had been delayed until next summer because of a nationwide shortage of roofing materials, the release stated.

The leak in the high school roof was discovered Aug. 19. The district’s roof design consultant, Structural Waterproofing Consultants of Wilsonville, then evaluated the roof and found that approximately 40% of the high school and cafeteria roofs required immediate repairs to be completed before winter.

“This year has been difficult for contractors to get construction materials,” board Chairwoman Mandy Decker said in the release. “We needed to perform the emergency repair to ensure that our students could stay in classes in the buildings this winter. We look forward to replacing the entire roof next summer.”

Under an emergency procurement declaration, the district solicited roof replacement and repair quotes and received proposals from three contractors. The district selected Eagle Cap’s repair proposal as the most cost-effective option to protect the district’s buildings until a full roof replacement can be performed next summer. Eagle Cap will perform repairs on a time and materials basis, with costs capped at $157,200.

Cassie Hibbert, project manager for the Wenaha Group — the district’s bond project manager — said in an email Sept. 30 the emergency repair will be paid for out of the general obligation bond plus an Oregon School Capital Improvement Matching grant.

The scope of the emergency roof repair includes spraying Expandothane protective roof coating on top of the existing roof membrane on targeted areas on the high school, the cafeteria and other small areas of the junior high building. Eagle Cap has applied this product on several commercial buildings in the La Grande area to extend roof life.

Three-day job

Hibbert said the repair work won’t take long. The contractor pressure washed the roof Friday to clean it so the spray coating will adhere to the existing membrane.

“We are watching the weather closely and are planning to have the contractor install the spray coating next week, likely on Tuesday and Wednesday,” Hibbert said last week in an email. “It will take two days to install the spray coating.

She said the current roof is structurally sound, even though it’s leaking. If a repair isn’t done, there is the potential for water to leak inside and damage finishes and be disruptive to school activities. She said students and staff are safe under the current roof.

Hibbert said the contractor will need to work during school hours to accomplish this work before the weather turns. The district and the Wenaha Group will closely coordinate the contractor’s work to make sure that they are not disruptive of any school or extracurricular student activities and that all students and staff are safe during those three days the contractor is working.

The Enterprise community approved a general obligation bond in November 2020 for capital improvement projects, including a roof replacement on the high school, junior high and primary buildings. Following bond approval, the district fast-tracked the design and bidding of the roof replacement for construction during summer 2021.

The district selected a roofing contractor in April, but due to national supply-chain constraints and raw-material shortages associated in part with the COVID-19 pandemic and early 2021 storms in the Southeast U.S., the contractor could not acquire material in time for summer construction. The district canceled that roof contract and will rebid the full roof project for construction during summer 2022, along with other bond projects.