From HVAC to pests, D.C. schools are still waiting on crucial repairs

[DCSportsFan.com]

The first weeks of the new school year in D.C. have brought reunions, excitement — and complaints of leaks, rodents, and broken elevators and air conditioners.

As temperatures soared during a stretch of sweltering heat last week, parents at Whittier Elementary School in Northwest Washington complained of a lack of air conditioning and wrote on social media: “We can’t breathe!”

Temperatures that pushed HVAC systems across the city past their limits have since cooled, but other issues — including out-of-service elevators and faulty public address systems — continue to vex teachers, students and their families.

The problems span the city. Among the more than 80 outstanding work orders are requests for pest control at Deal Middle School in Northwest and to repair leaks on the Langdon Education Campus in Northeast, according to a city-run database of repair needs. The ongoing problems continue to frustrate families and city leaders, who had hoped these issues would have been resolved by the first day of school.

Delano Hunter, acting director of the Department of General Services, acknowledged the D.C. government agency has room to improve. The department is responsible for maintenance and repairs in school buildings and other city-owned property.

But Hunter also said the department’s work this summer reflects a “dramatic improvement” from past school years, though the numbers suggest a more modest improvement. Last summer, DGS resolved about 88 percent of work orders that principals and other school leaders deemed to be “high priority” — whittling a list of 874 requests down to about 100 by the first day of school.

Read more here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/09/16/dc-school-repairs-hvac/

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