After lengthy discussions, school board amends American Charter School design plan

During the latest Matanuska Susitna Borough School Board (MSBSD) school board meeting, after some back and forth between the board and design lead for the school Jason Collins and Associate Superintendent of Operations Jim Estes, who were on hand to answer any questions and provide updates to the new building, the board amended the latest design for the American Charter Academy before tabling further discussion

Mat-Su Borough Code 19.08.060 requires that the school board, with the services of professional consultants, develop preliminary (35%) and final designs (95%). It then lies with the school board to determine if the proposed design meets the requirements of the school district before forwarding their recommendation to the MSB Assembly for final approval.

School board member Jacob Butcher pressed Estes about fire and life safety measures and the local fire service authority, specifically, wanting to know more about building codes within the Alaska Administrative Code (AAC) 13 AAC 50.025, Section 12, and the International Fire Code.

“In general review, we go through initial code review. We sit down with Mat-Su and Central Mat-Su Fire and do a plan review, that’s usually preliminary in concept schematic design, so we look at overall occupancy, exiting, and see if there are any major issues,” Collins explained. “Then we move forward. If there’s any questions, we review them again at 65% and 95%, but generally they see that again in the construction documents.”

Estes continued to explain that it isn’t until the completion of the design that the fire marshal reviews plans for code compliance if the building is within the Central Mat-Su area. Otherwise, buildings outside the central Mat-Su area go to the state for review and comment.

“Usually fire and life safety comments, some of which may be related to mechanical, electrical, and then we will get the engineers involved. Any of those comments are incorporated into the final documents and the bidding process. That’s why we try and get that going before the bid is complete. After that, we don’t see them again until occupancy or just prior to occupancy.”

He then explained that there is an occupancy review in which inspectors are looking for general fire and life safety components, such as fire extinguishers, fire suppression, exit signs, exiting paths, and maps. They also check for repeaters and booster systems, as well as access points for the schools for fire and emergency vehicles.

Collins said that for the American Charter Academy, the Mat-Su Fire Department has been consulted, and they have sat down with the design team early in the schematic design process and talked about classroom exits.

When Butcher asked if the permits have been submitted, Collins said that there hasn’t been funding for that part of the process.

“We don’t have funding for the school, but it (the permits) will go through Mat-Su Borough Fire Central Fire Services.”

Butcher pointed out that, in the matter of emergency responder radio coverage, American Charter will fall to the West Lakes Fire Department, to which he inquired if that department had been consulted.

“Usually that is done by the fire department or the permit review, because they know each other,” Collins explained before naming Don Cuthbert or others at Central Mat-Su Fire as those who review the designs for schools. However, Butcher pressed that the school is in West Lakes, saying that Mat-Su Fire would have nothing to do with this. While Collins reiterated that local fire departments do not deal with permitting at the school level.

“No, they won’t until the fire permit review has been done. They don’t have jurisdiction over permit reviews because they don’t have anybody knowledgeable about it,” said Collins.

The back and for continued as Butcher said that in referring to the International Fire Code, consultation will be made with the fire service area chief to include radio communications.

“What I’m getting at here, is there seems to be a pattern of radio communications inside these new schools not being operational.” Butcher then had the Houston High School SRO demonstrate that his own radio did not have communications within the district’s newest school building.

“That’s what our SRO’s are dealing with on a frontline school safety. That’s our primary concern above even education is school safety. And this is the newest school built basically with federal funding, and there’s no first responder radio communication inside this building.”

He then asked Estes if there were any plans for bi-directional amplification inside another school being built, Mat-Su Central, which is soon to break ground.

“As a maintenance department, we do not take lead on these projects. Any deficiencies we find, we correct. Especially code deficiencies,” he told the board. “When these are constructed, the district is never in the lead. I want to make that clear. We consult,” adding that the district does not employ project managers or engineers.

Butcher found fault with his statement, saying “I don’t buy the excuse that the district doesn’t own what’s being built for them.”

“What we need inside these schools for our frontline SROs, for Fire and EMS personnel is emergency radio communication in the event of an emergency for the students. I’ve been harping on this for close to a year now, and here I see more school plans coming to the board with no plans for radio communication inside…Who’s going to approve these plans? I don’t want to have my name on that.”

Estes said that in some matters, it depends on the source funding, stating as an example that if the state is funding the building, the state would direct the design regardless of what the board wants. In the matter of local or charter school funding, it is something that Estes, his department, and the board would have to navigate.

“It’s whether we have the resources to do it or not. If the board feels this is a priority, we will execute it.”

What followed was Butcher reading into record pertinent International Fire Code Chapter 5, Section 510.4.20.1, which basically says that all new buildings shall have approved radio coverage for emergency responders within the building, specifically that emergency responder communication coverage will have approved in-building, 2-way emergency responder communication coverage for emergency responders, and shall be based on the existing coverage levels of the public safety communication systems utilized by the jurisdiction, then said:

“If we’re not following International Fire Code, I see these plans as being in violation of Mat-Su Borough Code.”

Rusty Belanger, the safety and security manager for the MSBSD, told the council that while correct, there are also 3 exceptions within the original statute.

Those exceptions include utilization of a wired communication system, a radio system is not needed, or where it is deemed that systems, or components of the equipment needed could have a negative impact on normal operations, which must be approved by a fire code official.

“We are not going to know what is being asked of by the fire official until the 95-100% drawings, when that final review is done. If at that time they come back and state that this is supposed to be done, that is the point in place that we take over and make sure it gets done,” Belanger told the board.

“Until that is done, it is strictly a ‘may’ and not a ‘shall,’ not a ‘will,’ it’s a ‘may.’”

Butcher, who said he has nearly 20 years of experience in emergency communications, said that he would like to see every school district building equipped with these systems, and that more should be done to acquire them much earlier in the design process, which could cut some costs.

Estes pointed out that their goal is also to have student and staff safety as their top priority, but

“But when a code says you ‘may’ have to do this, it depends on the building.” He gave an example of a building a wood structure with no degradation, according to code, there is a potential of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for an item they don’t need.

“I’m not going to bank a student’s safety on a ‘may’ or ‘may not’ follow a code,” said Butcher.

Estes suggested instead adding in an additive alternative to the build, the contractors will have to give a price for the new building.

“We can write that in there as a requirement for the design and construction teams, worded through code. If this building needs it, it will be part of the contingency funding, however, we want to fund it, but we build it into the budget. That hasn’t existed.”

“We are custodians of taxpayer dollars. We could spend a lot of money on things we don’t need, but I don’t think, as a taxpayer myself, that I would be happy with that.”

Member Ole Larson concurred with Butcher, saying “This needs to be fixed. I don’t care what the cost is. The money can be found some way or somewhere. Either the Borough or the state, our budget, the Mat-Su Health Foundation, they’ve got $180 million in the bank. This is a safety issue, and it needs to be fixed.”

He then proposed revising the 65% design plan to include the emergency responder signal booster be added to the American Charter School.

“You may or may not need it, it doesn’t matter.”

The measure was unanimously approved.