The Board of Finance approved on Wednesday a request for an $11,000,000 bond appropriation to finance the replacement of 267,000 square feet of Fairfield Warde High School’s roofs, a project that is scheduled to take four years to complete.

But the board was not happy with the estimated cost and the way the project was presented to them, ranging from the cost breakdown to approving a price tag on a project before it was sent out to bid.

Finance board member Ken Brachfeld said he was unhappy with the cost breakdown because it didn’t specify the cost of labor and materials for each phase and task associated with the project.

He was also concerned that approving the funding request would give contractors an upper hand when bidding on the project because they would know how much money is available to replace the roofs.

Fellow board member Kevin Kiley said there seemed to be “a lot of cushion” with the estimate.

The $11 million request is a high-end estimate and the project costs are not to exceed that, First Selectman Michael Tetreau reminded the board. Should the project end up costing less than $11 million; the money goes back to the town.

The estimate does not include reimbursement from the state. Hoffman Architects, the firm that designed the project scope and came up with the cost estimate, advised that doing the work to qualify the project for reimbursement would end up costing the town $1 million more -- after reimbursement -- than what the finance board approved.

Tetreau and Chief Fiscal Officer Paul Hiller said they would be working with Rep. Kim Fawcett and Sen. John McKinney to get legislation passed to reimburse some of the project, but that wouldn’t be sorted out until at least May.

One thing the board could all agree on was the project had to move forward immediately so work could begin this summer.

Replacing the roof was discussed by the Board of Education roughly six years ago, according to school board member Tim Kery, who addressed the Board of Finance in support of the request.

“The town’s expert said this has 10 to 15 years of life,” Kery said, referring to Erin Aichler, project manager at Hoffman Architects, who attended the meeting. The firm designed and presented the scope of the project. “We’re on Year 21.”

In a 12-month period, the roof has suffered more than 150 leaks, according to Sal Morabito, manager of construction, security, and safety for the school district, who spoke before the Board of Selectmen on the project earlier this month.

Leaks are happening more frequently, Morabito said.

The new roofs will consist of modified two-ply roofing, as opposed to the current single-ply roofing, according to Erin Aichler, project manager at Hoffman Architects. This makes the roof more durable to temperature changes and easier for contractors to patch up leaks, she said.

The new roof would have a 30 to 40 year lifespan, Aichler said. The $11 million estimate includes a 20-year warranty.

“This building is wet,” Charlotte Leslie said. Leslie was PTA president at McKinley School when the old building was closed in 2000 due to a mold infestation. “It has been wet for years. This project is already a decade too late.”

The first phase of the project will take care the roofs on the library, administrative offices, auditorium, and cafeteria, Aichler said. The next year, the roofs on the gym and locker will be replaced; in year three, the industrial arts classrooms and Pequot House roofs will be replaced; and in the last year, the roofs on the Townsend and Fitz classrooms will be replaced.