new B-R High
September 9, 2007
A story in today's Enterprise discusses the issue regarding the athletic fields at the new B-R Regional High School. To clarify a couple of minor points: (a) it should refer to Joseph Gillis as Vice-Chair; (b) the Building Committee has not decided what to submit to the State Board for a plan.
I believe that we hired architects to design a building and grounds that conforms to all requirements. The classification of the athletic fields as a 'stadium' is clearly outside of the knowledge of a plumbing board. They can and should comment on copper vs. cast iron vs. plastic piping, and water flow rates through various sized pipes. But to make a determination of what something is -- that should be left to people who are certified in that area. Simply put, do you ask a plumber to design & build a house or do you ask an architect & contractor to design & build a house?
The State Plumbing Board has decided to classify this as a 'stadium', thus requiring one bathroom for every 30 women. But, the stupidity of their own regulations points to arbitrary requirements - (A) at a beach the requirement is one bathroom for every 200 women; (B) at a covered mall the requirement is one bathroom for every 750 women.
Perhaps the State Plumbing Board firgures that people going to see a son or daughter play field hockey or soccer have to go to the bathroom more frequently than at those other places. Maybe the State Plumbing Board, which meets in Quincy, should focus it energy on problems in Quincy? As reported a couple weeks ago, people who go to the Quincy branch of the RMV better not need a bathroom because there are none for customers of the RMV. The State RMV has locked the doors to the public bathrooms. Where is the State Plumbing Board on that? Not one bathroom for people waiting for RMV service. By the way, check out the RMV website (http://www.mass.gov/qrmv/quincy.shtm) and you can see wait times over two hours for most of the day!
Enterprise 9/8/2007, State: New B-R athletic field hits a hurdle, by Rebecca Starcevic, Enterprise staff
BRIDGEWATER — A state regulation may require the Bridgewater-Raynham regional school district to construct an additional 51 bathrooms at its athletic field that is under construction at the new high school.
The B-R school building committee is caught between state regulators and the architect hired to build the new high school in a dispute over how the school's athletic field is classified.
The architect and school building committee call it an all-purpose athletic field with enough bleacher seats (2,000) to accommodate the entire student body.
Next to the field is a utility building that houses a ticket booth, concession stand, and six bathrooms.
But according to an October 2006 letter to the district from Joseph Peluso Jr., executive director of the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gasfitters, the new “stadium facility” requires an additional 51 bathrooms.
This classification has baffled building committee members, including chairman Joseph Gillis Jr.
“We are not code interpreters,” he said, adding that he would expect the new high school's $5 million building plans produced by Symmes Maini & McKee architects of Cambridge would follow state regulations.
The Board of Examiners of Plumbing and Gasfitters notified the school department of its classification of the new athletic field as a “stadium” in October, 2006.
Since then, Bridgewater building and plumbing inspectors have been working with state regulators, Gillis said, but no compromise has yet been reached.
Members of the building committee are expected to discuss the issue at their meeting Monday morning.
They plan to submit a plan to the Board of State Examiners before the end of the month, Gillis said. Meanwhile, construction to erect the bleachers continues, he said.
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