City controller: schools in poor, hazardous condition

Philadelphia's 300 public school buildings are in poor shape, with dangers ranging from locked fire doors to crumbling structures to inoperable ventilation systems, city controller Alan Butkovitz said in a report released today.

Butkovitz, an outspoken critic of the district, visited a sampling of 19 schools he said was representative of all district buildings. He identified $15 million in "hazardous" conditions he feels should be fixed right away.

The city controller completed a similar report two years ago, and said there has been no improvement since then.

In a letter responding to Butkovitz's report, district interim chief executive Thomas Brady said he agreed with most of the findings of the inspection team.

"The School District does all that it can do within its resources to prioritize and address those issues that are health and safety related," Brady wrote.

Brady said the district knows it should spend $230 million annually on capital repairs, but it can only afford to budget $160 million.

He said it would take $4 billion to fix all problems at all schools.