August 29, 2003

Mr. Paul Derby, Director and Treasurer
North Rosslyn Civic Association
1902 N. Ode Street
Arlington, Virginia 22209-1412

Dear Mr. Derby,

I am writing to follow up with concerns you raised in the past about the condition of the Wilson Building. Since our initial meeting, I committed in-house staff and outside contractors to complete many of the issues we discussed. During our meeting, you mentioned that the fence needed repair, that school signs were outdated and inadequate, that the relocatables needed power washing, and that the general condition of the interior and exterior of the building was poor. You also lobbied Arlington Public Schools and many others for the use of the basketball courts during times when school programs were not using the courts.


During the October 2002 Pay-Go cycle, funds were allocated to abate asbestos from the Wilson Building. The abatement process included work above the ceiling, which involved the demolition of most of the old ceiling, the removal of old 12" x 12" floor tile and the removal of mastic used to secure the floor tiles to the floor throughout much of the building. As part of that process, funds were allocated to replace the ceiling grid and tiles as well as floors in the abated areas. The work also included the replacement of old interior lighting with new fluorescent lighting fixtures. In addition, staff has applied a fresh coat of paint throughout the building.


On the exterior of the building, we pressure washed the relocatables as promised by Maintenance Services, repaired the leaks to the front of the building, removed several dead trees and planted several new trees, and installed two new signs which have the ability to be easily modified for school programs. We currently have a painting contractor scraping and painting the exterior of the building.


We will evaluate the condition of the building as soon as the painting contractor has completed his work and will submit a request for any additional work that is needed in the upcoming Pay-Go cycle. A request in the Pay-Go cycle does not necessarily mean project funding will be granted. My staff and I are proud of the accomplishments at Wilson and we hope that your association recognizes the significant amount of work that went into the facility.

Sincerely,

Clarence E. Stukes
Assistant Superintendent


Cc: Dr. Robert Smith
Mike Day
Sylvia Taub