Concerned by cost overruns and other problems in the board of education's $106 million school construction program, Commissioner Robin Bartlett Frazier called yesterday for more government control over school projects.

"I think I would like to see the county be a little more involved in school construction. I think it would be great if the school board stuck to education and the county did construction," Frazier said.

The call for change occurs as school officials face possible state penalties for building a wastewater treatment plant -- a major part of a $16.3 million renovation and expansion of Francis Scott Key High School -- without the environmental and construction permits that are required by law.

School officials acknowledged the lack of permits yesterday and also revealed that the Francis Scott Key project is over budget. Kathy Sanner, director of support services, said she is calculating how much and will not release the figure until the next school board meeting next month.

Adding to the school system's troubles, owners of a farm adjacent to the high school have asked the Maryland Department of the Environment to force the school system to dismantle the plant because it was built without permits.

A state panel that supervises school construction is reviewing a $1.7 million overrun at Cranberry Station Elementary School in Westminster, which is expected to open in August one year behind schedule.

Frazier, who has been critical of school construction overruns, said she is concerned by the new problems faced by the board of education.

"I think it surely throws up some red flags," she said. "Overruns have to come from somewhere. Whether it's in budget or not, it's still taxpayers' dollars."

Commissioner Julia Walsh Gouge agreed, calling for a review of school construction budgets.

"I think the overruns on the schools need to be looked at more closely, and we need to figure out why it's happening. We can't continue to have overruns on projects," she said.

Gouge said direct county government control of school construction is unlikely because such a system would make the county ineligible for state school construction funding. But she hoped that the Board of County Commissioners and the board of education could work more closely together on the construction problems.

The commissioners' "hands are tied to a certain extent. We have to be the people who give the money, but we have no way of doing the checks and balances on it. I would like to have a working relationship with the board of education so that we can sit down and talk about these issues and find out what's wrong and correct it so it won't happen again," she said.

To that end, both boards are expected to meet in the next month, she said.

School board President Gary W. Bauer said he sees no need to take control of construction from school officials.

"We brought in a whole crew of people. I think we've hired a lot of excellent people. I don't see why we want to change that," he said.

School officials acknowledged yesterday that they built the $824,000 wastewater treatment plant at Francis Scott Key without the required state permits.

Sanner said she was also aware that the Board of Education would likely face penalties. "We are attempting to move through the huge maze of regulations and requirements to the best of our ability," she said. "I would hope they have some sympathy."

One of the main parts of the addition and renovation at the high school is replacement of the school's inadequate 40-year-old septic system with a wastewater treatment plant.

As part of the project, school officials planned to build a pipeline to carry treated effluent from the plant to a tributary of Little Pipe Creek.

Under state law, two permits are required to build a treatment plant, one to build the plant and a second to discharge the effluent.

School officials applied for both permits, but had not received either of them when they started construction.

Sanner said the school system pushed ahead with the construction because it did not expect to have problems obtaining either permit.

"We were moving ahead at our own risk," she said.

But the school system encountered opposition.

Neighbors protested last year the school officials' plans to release the effluent into a tributary of Little Pipe Creek, and the school system pulled the application.

School officials have been scrambling to find a new discharge point, but many options have been too costly or difficult.

The school system is spending $140,000 a year to haul about 7,000 gallons of raw sewage each day from the high school to Westminster's treatment plant.

Sanner said she is hopeful that the high school can release the effluent into Union Bridge's sewage system. She said she will meet with town officials tomorrow in a closed meeting to discuss that option. Union Bridge Mayor Perry L. Jones Jr. declined to comment on the meeting, but said: "Anything is open for negotiation."

Pub Date: 3/16/99