WHATELY — The Frontier Regional School District continues to consider moving its administrative offices from a building on Christian Lane, to the town office building.
Subcommittee members Tuesday discussed drafting a proposal to rent out a portion of the town office building at 4 Sandy Lane for the administration staff — a space that South County EMS has already expressed interest in moving into.
“We’re trying to figure out if the existing space in Whately can accommodate SCEMS and the school,” said Martha Barrett, Frontier Regional School superintendent. “If they can, great!”
A recent report said air quality in the existing administration building at 219 Christian Lane has had a negative impact on the health of employees. The report recommended taking steps to resolve the problem as quickly as possible.
Board members said it would take $50,000 to patch-up the failing system, and up to $500,000 to overhaul the entire building — including fire safety upgrades and accessibility installations.
Some employees from the building, such as computer technicians and IT workers, could move into repurposed classrooms at Frontier Regional School in South Deerfield.
If the subcommittee’s draft goes to a proposal, and that proposal is passed, the other employees could work at the town office building.
The draft sectioned off more than 2,500 square feet for the school offices, and about 3,600 square feet (which includes garage space) for the ambulance service.
A survey of employees by the subcommittee found the administration office requires more than 5,400 square feet to sufficiently house its employees.
Barrett said the subcommittee will finalize and present the proposal for space in the town offices next week.