Tunkhannock board authorizes engineering and bids for $1.4M admin boiler conversion

The Tunkhannock Area School District board voted to move forward with engineering and a public-bid process for replacement of the administration building boiler, authorizing a project not to exceed $1,400,000 that includes conversion from fuel oil to natural gas and from steam to circulating hot water.

Superintendent Paul Doherty told the board the existing boiler system is old, oversized and inefficient, and that converting to natural gas and hot-water circulation would increase efficiency from about 50–55% to roughly 85%. A facilities representative explained the board was approving engineering and bid preparation only, not immediate construction or contractor selection. The representative said engineering would likely be finished by the end of June, bids put out that month, and the district would aim to have the system functionally ready by Oct. 15 if the schedule holds.

Doherty said short-term repairs to buy time could cost approximately $15,000 but would not guarantee other failures would not follow. Board members asked about annual maintenance expenditures, UGI hookup timelines and the cost drivers in the estimate; the facilities representative said some budget figures were conservative, included demolition costs for an existing tank, and that the system would be set up for dual fuel so the district could use remaining oil through the transition.

The roll-call vote passed; one board member recorded a 'No.' The board instructed staff to complete engineering and to proceed to public bid preparation. The vote does not obligate the district to award construction work; it authorizes planning and procurement steps needed to evaluate firm construction costs.