Royal Valley to get new playground, classroom area

Royal Valley Elementary School is getting new playground equipment and an outdoor classroom area this fall after action taken during the recent board of education meeting.

The board is also moving forward with replacing the roof on two portions of RVES.

Superintendent Aaric Davis reported that members of the Community Learning Center program for childcare wrote and were awarded several grants during the 2021-22 school year to help cover costs at the center.

As a result, there is a surplus in the CLC budget, and Davis recommended using the funds to complete the RVES playground equipment project started a few years ago. 

The purchases will include a rope climber and a 28-foot by 30-foot canopy shade structure for an outdoor classroom area along with six eight-foot picnic tables from ABcreative of De Soto at a total cost of $61,392.

“That (the canopy and tables) would provide an outdoor space for students to get out of the sun if they want to sit down and relax, but also a place where a teacher could take their kids outside and do some fun activities,” Davis said.

Davis said he believed he could find less expensive picnic tables through a different vendor, and the board agreed to allow Davis to spend up to $61,392 towards the project.

Also during the meeting, the board received an update on construction projects around the district from Davis. 

The roof over the RVES library and gym need to be replaced. The glue is no longer working, and the roof membrane is separating from the hardboard underneath it, it was reported.

This spring, a roof replacement project was completed on the main section of RVES, which was experiencing the same issue.

The board approved a bid from $7,800 from HTK Architects of Topeka to seek bids for the roof project at the library and gym. Davis said that the entire project includes 16,000 square feet. 

Davis also reported that with the new two-story addition planned for the high school as part of the district’s new lease purchase, the state fire marshal’s office is requiring the district to install larger entrance doors at the front of RVHS.

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