Board approves summer 2025 maintenance projects; district details sports-complex challenges
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Summary
The board approved a $742,000 summer maintenance package to address building repairs, gym floor refinishing, canopy bids, site concrete, and security camera work; administrators described the sports complex grading, ADA and utility constraints and reported new water-line leaks at the complex requiring repair.
The Richland County Community School District 1 Board of Education approved the district’s summer 2025 maintenance-project list and budget during its regular meeting.
The projects — presented by district administration and approved by roll call — totalled about $742,000 in the presenter’s estimate and will be funded primarily from Fund 20 across two fiscal years, the administration said. The list covers a range of work across district buildings including replacement doors, boiler-room concrete, manufacturing-lab electrical upgrades, tuckpointing, gym-floor refinishing, lighting replacement (phase two), bus-lane sealing, canopy procurement for an elementary pickup area, playground demo and installation, and security camera installation at the bus garage and alternative-education building.
In the presentation, administrators also reviewed the sports complex site tours held for the community and engineers’ findings. The administration reported a 12-foot elevation difference across the field that drives water-flow and drainage problems; presenters said partial fixes to isolated areas would not resolve systemic grading and ADA issues. Staff described a million-dollar-plus estimate to replace the main grandstand and costs to rework restroom plumbing: the bathrooms currently have six stalls served by a 1.5-inch water line and a 4-inch sewer line, but code would require far more stalls for the facility’s seating capacity and a much larger water supply if a partial remodel were attempted, leading administrators to recommend comprehensive site work instead of piecemeal repairs.
Board members asked for clarifications about expansion joints and tuckpointing progress; administration said expansion-joint work is about two-thirds complete and some brick areas still need tuckpointing. For the middle and high school gyms, administration said the high-school gym floor is near the end of its usable life and will require replacement bids (estimated at $250,000–$300,000) next summer.
During the meeting’s later segments, administrators reported an emergent issue at the sports complex: the district’s water usage spike revealed three leaks in the 1.5-inch line that serves the concessions and restroom area. The district turned off that line; staff said repairing the remaining two-thirds of the run may require directional boring or excavation and estimated a likely cost near $20,000. The line currently prevents use of the bathroom building; porta-potties are in place for events while repairs are scheduled.
Board members approved the summer maintenance work on a motion by Mister Henderson, seconded by Mister Wilson. The roll call vote was recorded as yes by Mister Anderson, Mister Leist, Mister Snyder, Mister Henderson, Mister Wilson and Missus Bailey.