Wamego’s USD 320 Board of Education looked at its facilities study at Monday’s regular meeting. Dr. G. Kent Stewart, a Consultant hired by the Board to do a comprehensive study of all of USD 320 property, summarized his plan. He began his presentation by saying “all the schools in Wamego are exelmpary. evidenced by all the awards hanging in the buildings”. He added the Board should be proud of what’s going on in the schools.
Dr. Stewart reviewed the Six-Year Maintenance and Capital Improvement Plan to implement prioritized needs for the District. His study specifies planning for annual and long range school building maintenance projects is a five-step process of, (1) identifying needed projects, (2) estimating the project cost, (3) prioritizing by importance, (4) scheduling and (5) deciding how to finance the projects. Steps 4 and 5 are closely tied to the Districts capital outlay levy and fund balance. He presented a second study for the use of the St. Bernard’s site, and determined the property could serve multiple uses, but would need extensive remodeling to be ready for occupancy by July of 2015.
He based his recommendations on the fact that Wamego is destined to grow, with the population estimates for Pottawatomie County to climb to over 32,000 by 2040. The 2010 population of Pottawatomie County was 21,604.
The Board decided to table any decision until after a special meeting scheduled for October 27th. They felt they needed more time to review the presented material.
Director of Operations Larry Hannan updated the board on the list of projects he was given at the last meeting, He was directed to get firm numbers on a prioritized list, which included the vacant lots at 8th and Poplar, the High School security systems, the playground drainage issue at West Elementary and the Bus Maintenance Facility.
According to Hannan, City Code requires any lot greater than 2000 square feet needs to be paved, and will ask for a deferral until the District has a firm plan for the use of the lots. He stated he’s met with the security system vendors, and is still looking at having a system that is tied in with security cameras. He said the systems are very expensive and is looking at a phased-in operation.
When he addressed the West Elementary playground drainage issue, he said he’d received one bid from the company that installed the existing playground, and was shocked that it would cost over $35,000 to rebuild to solve the drainage problem, and that the cost does not include any new material. He concluded by saying he’s had 2 pre-bid meetings for the Bus Maintenance Facility, and has sent 7 requests for bids, which should be back in a couple of weeks.
Also at Monday’s meeting, Navitas representative Ryan Terry revisited the issue of how the Districts energy efficient upgrades could save enough over a 15-year period to pay for other maintenance issues by financing with performance bonds. The Board voted to have Navitas perform a comprehensive audit of the District’s immediate maintenance needs. Superintendent Denise O’Dea said she has used performance bond financing for energy upgrades in her prior district and the savings were substantial.
In other business, the Board reviewed the policy on advertising in the schools after an advertisement appeared on the Sports Complex Scoreboard. The Booster Club bought and paid for the new scoreboard, and secured the advertisement. They were unaware of the school polity, but received permission from a former coach for the advertising. The policy prohibits ads promoting the sale of any controlled substance, drug paraphernalia or any other illegal material or activity. Further review of the policy will be discussed at the October 27th special meeting.
Since October is National Bullying Prevention Month, Board President Richard Weixelman felt it necessary to review USD 320’s policy. O’Dea said bullying is taken seriously in all USD 320 buildings. The current policy states that both bullying by Staff and Students is prohibited in any form and is subject to disciplinary action, which could include suspension and expulsion. The policy states the student who violates the bullying prohibition would be reported to local law enforcement.
