4-H Building Roof Shows Extensive Hail Damage, Requires Major Repairs

The roof of the 4-H Building at the Saline County Expo Center has sustained significant hail damage and will require substantial repairs, county officials reported Tuesday.

During his quarterly update to the County Commission, Expo Center Director David Flaherty presented findings from a recent roof inspection conducted by Ryan Roofing.

"The existing roof membrane does appear to have multiple hail fractures throughout the entire roof," Flaherty said, citing the inspection report. He explained that water is seeping through numerous small punctures caused by hail impacts.

The damaged roof consists of a DuraLast membrane installed in two phases - a smaller 3,925-square-foot section installed in 2002 and the main 12,584-square-foot section installed in 2005. The 15-year warranty on the larger section has already expired.

Flaherty showed commissioners photos of water damage to the building's interior ceiling tiles. In some areas, staff have had to poke holes in ceiling tiles to drain accumulated water into buckets during rainfall.

County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes noted that the 4-H building faces several major expense issues beyond just the roof.

"You've got the restrooms, you've got the roof, and you've got the kitchen as major expenses," Smith-Hanes said. "If you want to keep that building operating."

Commissioner Hay questioned whether the county should evaluate the future of the Expo Center facilities.

"I think that we really need to take a hard look at...the future of the 4-H building," he said. "I know that we've got the restrooms in there and we've been told that those restrooms could be up to a million dollars to repair or fix or replace."

Commissioner Weese expressed concern about the weight of water-soaked insulation in the suspended ceiling, with one noting, "You could have a failure."

No immediate action was taken on the roof repairs, but the presentation was intended to inform commissioners about upcoming facility needs.