Aug. 27, 2001 — Work is scheduled to begin Monday on the east wing of the Elena Christian Junior High School on St. Croix, more than a year and a half after Hurricane Lenny damaged it in 1999.
Property and Procurement Commissioner Marc Biggs said $1.4 million worth of work is set to start on Phase III of the renovations at the St. Croix school. Phase I involved temporary measures to prepare one wing of the school for the 2000 instructional year after Hurricane Lenny hit St. Croix in November 1999. Phase II defined the scope of work that had to be done to properly repair and rehabilitate the school.
"The initial estimate for the repair of Building D and E, including electrical, mechanical and plumbing is approximately $2 million," Biggs said in a release Friday. "It should be noted, however, that the scope of work involves the replacement of the roof and the demolition of existing wall structures and rebuilding it with concrete blocks."
Given the availability of approximately $1.4 million for the Elena Christian School repairs, Biggs said he has scheduled the work to be contracted and completed in two phases. Phase IIIA will include the repair and renovation of Building D, which is presently not being used. Once completed, school staff and students now using Building E will occupy it and the renovation will begin on Phase IIIB.
Gov. Charles Turnbull toured the derelict east wing of Elena Christian in May. The loss of space has forced some teachers to move from classroom to classroom throughout the school day.
Some two months after Hurricane Lenny struck St. Croix, Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II and Education Commissioner Ruby Simmonds toured the school. James said then that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had documented the need for $137,482 worth of work that included repairing the roof, windows and louvers, and replacing ceiling and floor tiles.
Delegate to Congress Donna Christian Christensen had said then that FEMA hazard mitigation funding was available for Elena Christian, conditional on matching dollars from the local government.
But a year and a half later, the east wing of the school sits unused and deteriorating. Windows are boarded if not broken, and sections of exterior siding are missing, allowing a clear view of the rusting steel frame.
