The Owego Apalachin Central School District takes a small step forward in its flood recovery effort as it works to figure out what to do about four buildings, including Owego Elementary School.
School district leaders say preliminary estimates show it would be more cost effective to replace the school rather than rebuild it. While leaders have provided this information to FEMA Wednesday, in hopes they'll agree and then cover the cost to replace the school, Superintendent Dr. Bill Russell declined to tell Action News the initial costs associated with replacing the school.
The elementary school, the district's administrative office, and two maintenance buildings were ravaged by Septembers flood waters, forcing elementary students to relocate to other buildings.
Leaders say if the school were replaced there would be many elements to consider.
"If we were to rebuild in the same place which is below the 100 year flood plain on our campus, we would have to design a building that could be flood proofed to guard against another event like the one we had. Perhaps an easier way, from a design point of view would be to rebuild outside of the flood plain but almost all of our property on our campus is in the flood plain. So, we have to look at design elements and figure out if we can come up with an appropriate design that will allow us to flood proof the building," says Dr. Russell.
The board expects to hear from FEMA in the next couple of weeks.
If FEMA agrees that the school should be replaced, FEMA will determine how much it will pay the district for the project.
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