New roof coming for Lavins Center

GROSSE POINTE PARK — Just like a home periodically needs a new roof, so, too, do municipal buildings. One structure in particular in Grosse Pointe Park is now due for a replacement.

The Lavins Center at Windmill Pointe Park will soon be getting a new roof to replace its old one, which City Manager Nick Sizeland said was installed in 2003.

“It’s about time,” said Sizeland, noting that the building has experienced leaks in the gym and movie theater, among other spots.

The Grosse Pointe Park City Council unanimously approved a low bid of $172,935 for the project from Chesterfield Township-based Schena Roofing & Sheet Metal during a meeting Feb. 13. Sizeland said $180,000 was set aside in the capital improvements fund for this expenditure.

Schena was one of three companies that submitted bids for this job. Sizeland said Public Works Supervisor Tom Jenny felt Schena would provide the “best quality” roof for the building.

The city is going with a rubber urethane roof. Sizeland said Schena also provided a less expensive roofing material option, but the Department of Public Works cautioned that it might need more maintenance and it wouldn’t match with the existing roofing materials.

The rubber roof will be better suited to handling the temperature extremes that Sizeland said the Lavins Center experiences.

“We’re not just doing this because it’s 20 years old,” City Councilman Thomas Caulfield said. “It’s actually in need of repair.”

Sizeland agreed.

“This is an absolute need more than a want,” Sizeland said.

Sizeland said Schena includes a two-year warranty on the roof, as well as a 20-year manufacturer’s labor and material warranty. He said Schena has had experience with installing rubber roofs like this one.