How the district is working to replace aging HVAC equipment, improve student comfort
Posted on 03/14/2024
The week of August 21, 2023, was one of the hottest and most humid weeks on record for St. Louis. Looking at the forecast, the district’s facilities team knew that as schools were welcoming back their students for the 2023-2024 school year, some of the district’s aging HVAC equipment may fail or simply not keep areas of buildings comfortable.
Many of the district’s HVAC systems are 20 to 30 years old. A typical lifecycle for HVAC systems is 15-20 years.
Schools with the oldest equipment, like Bernard Middle, Oakville Elementary and Wohlwend Elementary, all experienced HVAC outages during the heat wave. Some classrooms had to move to other areas in the buildings.
At Bernard Middle School, for example, multiple roof-top units went down, and teachers in the eighth-grade wing moved to other areas of the building to escape the heat. Oakville Elementary saw the failure of a rooftop unit that cooled the library, and Wohlwend’s rooftop unit that cooled the gym malfunctioned.
“What we saw in August was the result of years of delayed maintenance and replacements,” said Dr. Jeff Haug, Superintendent of Schools. “I’m incredibly appreciative of our facilities team. They worked around the clock to keep our buildings as cool as possible. Based on the plans the Mehlville Board of Education has put into place, I’m optimistic that we will avoid future HVAC mechanical failures like we saw in August.”
The Mehlville Board of Education has unanimously approved several bids to replace aging HVAC equipment. As a result of the increase in assessed values of Mehlville School District properties, the board has approved almost $8 million in bids for HVAC work in the summer of 2024 alone.
Bernard Middle School, which saw the most equipment outages in August, will receive $1.8 million in HVAC replacements, including 10 new roof-top units, all new variable air volume boxes with reheat coils (which provide temperature control in each classroom), five new water heaters, two new boilers, exhaust fans, and new controls and wiring for the energy management system. Bernard Middle School’s HVAC equipment is original to the building, which opened in 2003.
Oakville Elementary School will receive $1.2 million in HVAC replacements, including the replacement of one rooftop unit that cools the library and 42 spaces including classrooms. Additionally, the school will receive new variable air volume boxes for the area cooled by that rooftop unit, two new boilers, and new controls and wiring for the energy management system. The equipment scheduled for replaced is original to the building, which opened in 2004.
Point Elementary School will receive $1.7 million in HVAC replacements. This includes the replacement of five rooftop units, and the replacement of two air-handling units with one new rooftop unit. Almost all classrooms will receive new variable air volume boxes. Two boilers are being replaced along with a domestic water boiler. The school will receive new controls and wiring for the energy management system, new electric cabinet heaters and new exhaust fans. Point Elementary School’s HVAC equipment ranges in age from 20-30 years old.
Wohlwend Elementary School will receive $2 million in HVAC replacements, including two new rooftop units that are more than 25 years old. The school is also getting a new chiller and pumps related to the boilers that were replaced two years ago. The school will also receive new electric cabinet heaters, new unit ventilators in every classroom that currently has one, new exhaust fans, new controls and wiring for the energy management system, a new air handler in the gym and a replaced kitchen make-up air system.
The district pool, located on the campus of Mehlville High School, will receive $1 million in HVAC related repairs. The pool building will get a new dehumidifier, two new boilers (one to heat the pool water and one to heat the facility), a domestic water boiler (for showers and sinks in the locker rooms), new locker room heaters and a split system air conditioner for the pool office and electrical room. Loose and broken concrete in the mechanical room will also be replaced. The district’s pool is used by Mehlville High and Oakville High swim, dive and water polo teams, physical education classes from both schools, and about 500 Community Education participants each year.
Most of this work will be completed in the summer of 2024, and some work has begun in non-classroom areas of the schools.
More than $15 million in HVAC replacements are planned for the summer of 2025 at the following locations:
- Blades Elementary School
- John Cary Early Childhood Center
- Oakville High School
- Oakville Middle School
- Rogers Elementary School
- Trautwein Elementary School
- Washington Middle School
About $9 million in HVAC replacements are planned for the summer of 2026 at the following locations:
- Beasley Elementary School
- Bierbaum Elementary School
- Mehlville High School
“By the end of 2026, all of our HVAC equipment will be at or under 10 years old,” Dr. Haug said. “By making smart investments in our critical infrastructure with our current tax revenue, we are able to delay asking voters to borrow funds through a general obligation bond. This saves the district over $12 million in interest expense and ensures comfortable learning environments for the community’s 10,000 students.”