Amigos del Valle can't support full green roof; San Juan looks at smaller scale
SAN JUAN — City leaders are exploring more limited ways to utilize a proposed live, green roof for Amigos del Valle in San Juan, after the building failed a structural check.
The city received a grant to put a roof composed of grasses and soil on the building at 600 W. First St., but ran into structural concerns in February. Harlingen-based engineering firm Green, Rubiano & Associates has since found it would cost more than $250,000 in changes to make the building sturdy enough to support the roof.
Alternatively, the firm estimated, the city could spend $100,000 on less extensive structural repairs for a simple roof replacement, or $60,000 on minimal roof repairs and improvements.
The 5,250-square-foot building has not had any significant renovations since it was built in the late 1970s. Engineers found significant deterioration of the roof, drainage problems, corroded roof framing, deteriorated columns and overhangs, and cracks in the exterior walls.
The building is not unsafe, engineers said, but it has less than half the load-carrying capacity necessary to support the proposed LiveRoof Lite system.
Texas A&M University at Kingsville approved San Juan to receive the grant last year using funding from the Environmental Protection Agency. University representatives came to meet with city leaders Thursday about the project, and were agreeable to the option of doing the green roof on a smaller scale.
“At the end of the day this is an experimental-type project,” City Manager J.J. Rodriguez said. “(So) they were willing to cut a bit of the scope.”
San Juan is now proposing to take the middle road: replacing the roof for $100,000 and putting the LiveRoof system on only a few stronger portions that are lower on the building. Rolando Rubiano of Green, Rubiano & Associates said administrators of the grant were especially interested in the idea of runoff from the main roof falling onto the green roof.
The university is hoping to use the roof to monitor, among other things, drainage issues from living roofs. The grant allocates money for one year of construction for the project, which will probably begin near the end of summer, and two years of maintenance.
The project was originally budgeted for $318,700, with the university paying $190,700 and the city assuming the remaining $128,000 cost. Rodriguez said the costs now have not been finalized, but he does not expect a dramatic change. He said Texas A&M will also help pay for some structural repairs.
The city has not dealt with a green roof before, nor did Rodriguez know of others in the Valley, so he said he was cautiously looking forward to its unknowns.
“It’s going to be an interesting one,” he said. “It’s one of those firsts in the area.”
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Elizabeth Findell covers Pharr, San Juan, Alamo, the Mid-Valley and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4428.
