Isle of Wight County supervisors voted unanimously on Sept. 19 to authorize financing of an estimated $7.5 million replacement of Carrollton Elementary’s heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system.

Isle of Wight County Schools officials blame the circa-1993 school’s failing HVAC system for recurring problems that include the recent detection of black mold in classrooms.

The adopted resolution authorizes the county to apply for a loan through the Virginia Public School Authority, a division of the state treasury that provides financing exclusively for public school projects.

Jimmy Sanderson, a representative of the county’s financial advising firm, Davenport & Co., estimated in August that repayment would carry an interest rate around 4%, though, according to county Chief Financial Officer Stephanie Wells, the exact rate isn’t known yet.

“The interest rate is going to be set based on the market when the loans go out to market, and then responses will be made, and then we’ll get the best rate that’s on the market,” Wells told the supervisors.

Sanderson last month estimated borrowing through the VPSA would cause annual debt service payments of just over $540,000 through 2045 to repay the principal and interest.

The replacement isn’t expected to occur until next summer.

“This doesn’t just happen immediately, but yet if we want the monies to be available by the time the equipment needs to be purchased in the spring for a summer installation, we have to apply for the VPSA funds now,” said Supervisor Renee Rountree.

According to IWCS Deputy Superintendent Christopher Coleman, the school division plans to solicit bids for the replacement by Nov. 19 and expects to receive them by Dec. 19. Under Virginia’s public procurement process, the School Board will then vote to award the contract to a bidder.

IWCS anticipates the selected contractor will receive a notice to proceed from the county by Feb. 5 and, within 10 days of receiving completed drawings on March 5, will begin mobilizing construction crews. By spring, IWCS will order the parts for the new HVAC system, including chilled and hot water piping and fan units, Coleman said.

Isle of Wight County’s 2024-25 budget included $9.5 million in local funding for one-time expenses tied to its school system, the majority of which was earmarked for the HVAC project.

“I was not real pleased when I saw all the conditions of that school, and I think we as a board in conjunction with the School Board, we are obligated to provide a safe and healthy environment for the teachers, the students and the citizens of this county,” said Supervisor Rudolph Jefferson. “Some folks might complain about we have to borrow extra money to fix this problem, but this problem didn’t just come up yesterday; it’s been on the horizon for years.”

While Isle of Wight could in theory pay the $7.5 million out of its cash reserves rather than borrow the money, replenishing the reserves would entail a roughly 11-cent increase in the county’s real estate tax rate for one year, Supervisor McCarty said. By spreading repayment through 2045, the additional debt service would equate to less than a 1-cent tax rate increase, he said.

Meanwhile, the school system is implementing a series of measures to reduce exposure by students and staff to mold until the HVAC replacement solves the problem permanently.

Coleman said visible mold in a classroom closet in the spring was traced to a leaking water pipe.

“Students and staff were relocated,” Coleman said. “The water pipe was repaired and all contaminated materials removed.”

The school later tested the entire school for mold, which, according to division spokeswoman Lynn Briggs, returned results showing elevated levels of penicillium and aspergillus spores as well as stachybotrys, or black mold. This prompted another round of cleaning and the use of high-efficiency particulate air, or HEPA, filters, which Coleman said can capture particles as small as 0.3 microns.

“We understand that these issues may cause concerns and we are committed to ensuring that our school environment remains safe and as healthy as possible,” Coleman said.

Briggs said that indoor mold is natural, but what indicates a problem is when indoor spore counts are higher than outdoor. The affected rooms are scheduled to be retested Sept. 23, she said.

“We will be notifying families who have children in the rooms that tested in those high ranges that those rooms are being retested and we’ll keep continuing our communications with them as we get the results back, and we’ve stressed that the real solution to this is coming through the replacement of that HVAC system,” Briggs said. “Until that happens, we know we have to remain vigilant to keep things healthy for our students and staff.”