Grouting Operation Underway to Firm Up Middle School Foundation

Concerns about the foundation of a new middle school in the Phoenixville Area School District has led to a grouting operation.

At Thursday night’s school board meeting, Executive Director of Operations Stan Johnson reported on the issue to the board.

“The purpose of the grouting operation is to ensure that the foundation, which was installed last fall, in November, is solid, tight and is not going to be moving,” Johnson said. “Obviously it’s very bad for the building if the foundation moves.”

The problem was picked up on in December, when Schuylkill Valley Engineers dug some test holes around the middle school foundation. They found soft soil that indicated the problem. Initially, 383 holes were identified to be grouted, but as additional verification holes were dug and more unstable soil was disovered, the number increased to 435.

During the process, the operation used more grout than expected, indicating “vascular voids in the ground,” according to Johnson.

“If we continue to find some problems we will continue grouting until we are sure that we have a good solid foundation,” Johnson said.

More test holes were drilled Friday and more are expected Monday, Johnson said. When the operation is complete, the district will get letters from the geotechnical engineer, architect and structural engineer deeming the foundation safe. Then, they’ll continue erecting steel, for the middle school, which should take a month.

After the meeting, Superintendent Dr. Alan Fegley said that the responsible parties would likely be on the hook for the cost of the grouting operation. He said he didn’t believe the district would incur any costs. School Board President Paul Slaninka thanked Johnson and his team for their work on the grouting operation.

“They are absolutely making 100 percent sure that everything is perfect out there, that there’s nothing left to fate,” Slaninka said.