Mukhtar Kabuka managed this challenging project with great care and sensitivity to the school, educational program, and the surrounding neighborhood. It also included repainting the entire school and adding new soffits to conceal existing pipes throughout the maze of open corridors. The real challenge that proved to be formidable to achieve was the removal of 7-8 layers of existing paints dating back to 1935, considering that some of the old paints had lead and some paints were oil-based paint. We explored several paint removing options such as sand blasting, chemical application, and water pressure cleaning. We faced several challenges and constraints in selecting the most appropriate and economical solutions, such as environmental pollution, dust pollution, poison contamination due to the presence of lead, impacting the daily school classes and educational programs, and finally cost. We used a combination of water pressure cleaning and limited chemical application on the areas that had lead paints. We had to work around the educational programs to minimize the impact on the school.
Construction Cost: $1.0 Million
Owner: The Dade County School Board