Starr King Elementary has big, beautiful windows looking out over Potrero Hill. But in a warming climate, they’re causing a big problem.
"They are greenhouses," said parent Jessica Agnos. "The schools are greenhouses."
The building was updated in 2015, but the school still doesn’t have air conditioning.
School staff have asked for AC, but the district says that even window units would require remodeling they can’t afford. They also pointed out that this is only the third heat advisory this school year. But Agnos works at Starr King, and says it’s hot most days, not just during extreme weather.
"Any 67-degree day in San Francisco, where it's sunny in Potrero Hill, is going to make an uncomfortable classroom," said Agnos.
The district told them to designate a cooler room in the building where people can take breaks. But Agnos says this room simply doesn’t exist — and even if it did, it wouldn’t be big enough to accommodate three floors of students.
"The best solution would be to get some sort of exterior shading to prevent the sun from even coming in," said Mike Warshaw, a parent and architect. "This would be like awnings attached to the outside of the building or solar fins that would shade the windows before the sun even gets to the window."
He says AC is only a Band-Aid anyway, and can drain a lot of energy in poorly insulated buildings. Instead, the PTA is working on bringing in awnings and greenery. They’ve raised the money themselves.
"There's a lot of bureaucracy for any large project in San Francisco, or any kind of infrastructure project in San Francisco," Warshaw said.
He suspects they’d face less red tape if the district led the work rather than parents, but for now they’ll have to deal with permitting and the city indirectly.
