FRANKLIN FURNACE — The main part of the Green primary school building could be occupied, says the structural engineer who spent part of Tuesday going through the structure.

However, classes were canceled for a second day as staff continued packing to move primary students to the elementary building, according to Superintendent Ron Lindsey.

It’s a move Lindsey wants to be permanent.

“I had made that recommendation, but the board didn’t want to do that,” Lindsey said. “I will re-recommend and keep that building closed.”

Tuesday the entire building that houses the 206 students in grades pre-school through second was shut down.

That came after a Monday night meeting of the Green Board of Education where the board decided closing the building was in the best interest of the students.

“Last week we noticed broken mortar and movement of bricks in the rear of the gym,” Superintendent Ron Lindsey said Tuesday. “These issues got progressively worse. We closed the gym last week.”

Stephen Metz of Shelley Metz Baumann Hawk, structural engineering consultants from Columbus, spent a couple of hours Tuesday going through the school.

“My recommendation to the superintendent today was that the gym not be occupied until the repairs be made,” Metz said.

Metz said he would have to study his findings before he could say what repairs needed to be made to the gym and how extensive they would be.

But the rest of the school could be used, he said.

“It is my opinion the building is not unsafe to occupy. But that is up to the superintendent,” he said.

However, Lindsey wants to get modular units to put on the elementary campus for next year’s primary classes. That and re-arranging classrooms at the elementary could accommodate both levels of students.

As far as the gym the district is looking to see if it could be repaired and safe for public use again as it is used for many non-educational community activities, the superintendent said.

“The gym is this community issue,” the superintendent said. “If we don’t have a gym for community use that will be a major problem for this community. One gym wouldn’t fit the needs for this community.”

Metz intends to issue a report to Lindsey by the end of the week detailing his overall findings and the work that might have to be done.