Construction at Thomas Page Academy in Cotati prompts complaints

A multimillion-dollar project at Thomas Page Academy in Cotati is expected to result in a complete renovation of the decades-old school by the fall, but in the meantime it has prompted health and noise complaints related to construction taking place while school is still in session.

The Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District began its overhaul of the campus this March with funding from an $80 million bond, Measure B, which passed last summer. Among other things, the estimated $12 million project will result in 12 portable buildings being removed or demolished and replaced with new classrooms, a library and a computer lab.

The idea is to modernize facilities and expand capacity at the school, which serves about 500 students in grades kindergarten through eight. School and district officials determined it wouldn’t be possible to complete all the work during the summer alone and decided that if there must be disruptions, it would be better to affect the end of this school year than the beginning of the new one, Superintendent Robert Haley said.

But the construction on the Madrone Avenue property, especially the demolition, has upset some community members and teachers and resulted in complaints to the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA.

“It seems (district officials) were more concerned with the timeline than they were with kids having a quiet place to learn,” said Maha Gregoretti, head of the union representing teachers in the school district.

She does not work at Thomas Page Academy but said she has heard from numerous teachers who do and who are concerned about the noise, dust and debris resulting from the construction.

Specifically, she said, teachers reported that they and students experienced breathing problems after the portables were demolished and questioned what substances, such as mold, might have been released into the air.

Also, she said, the noise from nearby jackhammers had been extremely disruptive to some classrooms.

She said she had reached out to the school district and made several calls to Cal/OSHA on behalf of teachers she said were nervous about speaking up.

Some community members also have voiced concern to the school district and City Council after hearing from affected teachers and parents.

“While the construction project goals are great, the implementation of the project is not,” said Amy Lyman, a Cotati resident who became aware of the issue while walking by the school with friends last weekend. She said she and a fellow community member since have talked with numerous concerned parents and employees.

In addition to the dust and noise, she worried about the impact on a community garden that had been fenced off during construction.

Haley said he is aware of such concerns. His district recently received notification from Cal/OSHA of a complaint alleging a lack of dust control and excessive noise from jackhammers operating as few as 10 feet from classrooms.

On May 12, the agency sent a letter to the school district informing it of the complaint. In it, the agency requested that the district investigate the allegations itself and respond within 14 days as to whether the conditions alleged in the complaint exist and, if so, how the district plans to correct them.

When the state agency deems a complaint serious, it will conduct its own inspection in person or by phone, which it has not done in this case.

Haley said the district already investigated the matter as requested and responded to Cal/OSHA. He said the district determined all the allegations were unfounded.

“We are following all the necessary and required safety precautions,” he said, adding that he has the “utmost confidence” in the construction company, Wright Contracting, and his facilities director, Josh Savage, to oversee a safe project.

He had made a point to discuss the matter with the school principal, teachers and the district’s facilities committee to determine the best time to do the construction, Haley said.

“I understand there are some disruptions, but we have to keep in mind the end goal,” he said.

Staff Writer Jamie Hansen blogs about education at extracredit.blogs.pressdemocrat.com. You can reach her at 521-5205 or jamie.hansen@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter ?@jamiehansen.