The Massapequa Board of Education last week postponed roof removal projects at Lockhart and Fairfield elementary schools due to parents' fears about asbestos, pushing work that was slated to begin at the end of this month off to the summer, and forcing the cancellation of the district's summer recreation program.

Parents came out in droves at public meetings on Wednesday and Thursday to express their concerns that the work, which would have been done after school hours and on the weekends, would expose asbestos in the roofing to their children. They were not convinced by school officials who told them there was no risk of such exposure because the asbestos in the roof material would not be pulverized.

"It was not dangerous," Dr. James Brucia, superintendent of Massapequa Schools said this week. " But the parents felt it was dangerous, and there was no way the board was going to convince them otherwise."

The board voted to postpone the work to the summer by a vote of three in favor, one against and one abstention. The postponement cost the district about $70,000 in fees, according to Brucia.

Bob Thompson, the only trustee to vote against the postponement, said this week that the board's decision went against the advice of the district's reputable construction firm, which he said ruled out any danger from the removal project. "In my mind, if this issue came up a week after the election, I believe the board would have voted differently, because there is no logical reason for [postponing] it," he said, adding that the resulting cancellation of the summer recreation programs will have an adverse effect on working parents who were counting on it being in place.

Diane Krakoff, who along with Christine Nottonson and Arlene Martin voted for the postponement, said this week that she did so because the parents' concerns about their children's safety had to be alleviated. "There was talk of them not sending their children to school, of forming a human chain around the building to prevent the work. And, our responsibility is making sure those children are in that building and learning - and being educated," she said. "And if we are going to have hundreds of parents pulling their children out of school, because of that work, we needed to look at that. We needed to find a way to make everybody comfortable, and that's what we did."

The roof work at Lockhart and Fairfield, which is part of the district's $49 million bond issue, was slated to take place at the end of the school year to allow the summer recreation program to take place at those schools. The recreation program was set to take place at those schools because all of the other schools in the district already had been scheduled to undergo bond issue roof work during the summer. Those projects had been slated for the summer because they are more extensive and require more time, according to Brucia. There will be no summer recreation program because all elementary schools will now have repair work under way.

The district's Elementary Summer School Program will be held for four weeks (July 19 through Aug. 13) at the McKenna School, according to school administrators. Roof flashing work on McKenna will be completed between June 28 and July 10. Thus, the district noted, all roof material containing non-friable asbestos will have been removed before summer school begins. Regular roof removal and window installation will continue at McKenna while summer school is in session, according to the district.

"There will be a great deal of roofing and window work on our school buildings over the summer. District officials will keep the inconvenience to a minimum," Brucia stated in a release to the press this week, announcing the plans. "The administration is asking for the cooperation of our residents during this period as the bond issue work begins."

The district's Summer Reading Clinic will be held at the McKenna School starting July 19, as will the Special Education Fast for Word Program. The Summer Music Program is scheduled to be held at Massapequa High School for six weeks from July 6 through Aug. 13. However, the district noted that roofing work will be done at the high school, and music locations may have to be moved during the summer period. Parents may call the Fine Arts Office at 797-6058, after June 15, for more information about this and fees. The Sports Camps run by the district will be held, according to administrators, and more details about this is expected soon from the Recreation Office, which can be reached at 797-6197. The Secondary Summer School will be held at Massapequa High School from July 6 through Aug. 13, and more information about this may be obtained by calling the Guidance Department at 797-6120.