Renovations to auditorium being made piece by piece

While construction continues to progress at the new elementary building in the Holton school district, an encroaching deadline made another project the center of discussion at the USD 336 school board meeting on Monday night.

Renovations at the Holton High School auditorium have been a topic addressed by the board on and off for more than a year now. Serious discussion culminated this summer with HHS Principal Rod Wittmer bidding out the various phases of the project.

With the ranging prices for lighting, sound, seating, etc., the district has moved forward with the project in piecemeal fashion. Currently, the auditorium has been re-painted and the ventilation system has been cleaned, with new lighting the next part of the plan to be implemented.

Originally, Wittmer noted he received three bids for lighting, but after discussion with Tom Kelly (who has been utilized as a consultant on the project) that number was cut down to two for serious consideration.

Bids from Theatrical Services of Wichita ($82,982) and Stage Lighting of Topeka ($65,816) were the two that Kelly helped break down further to make sure they compared apples to apples. Wittmer then presented those two bids to the board at Monday’s meeting.

Theatrical Services provided an excellent scope of the work, Wittmer said, while Stage Lighting (the lower bid) left some questions to be answered, something Wittmer said he would want to discuss Kelly before moving forward.

A deadline to accept a bid is fast approaching, though, as Wittmer noted the HHS fall musical will be held in mid-November and currently the seats have not been re-installed after painting the auditorium to allow for work on the lighting.

“If we’re going to have something in place for the fall musical, we really can’t wait much longer,” Wittmer said.

There were some issues raised about the inability to use the old lighting, which Wittmer noted is an issue because of the lights not switching on, while some questions were raised about the lighter scope listed in the Stage Lighting bid, though Superintendent Dennis Stones gave his support.

“I think it’s a system that’s going to be functional for a long time,” Stones said.

Board member Bob Phillips also asked about the timeline of the full project, with Wittmer and Stones noting the lighting was the last phase to be schedule for the 2015-2016 school year, while new curtains for the stage could potentially be purchased if the pricing works out.

Following that, the plan is to get new seating and a new sound system in place sometime this summer.

After the discussion, the board approved (6-0) a budget authority of up to $70,000 to purchase lighting from Stage Lighting after clarifying a few questions about the bid.

Other items addressed at Monday’s board meeting:

*Approved the consent agenda items, including warrants and staff changes.

*Approved the hiring of Jennifer Phillips (SPED para, HMS), Gwenn Bartles (para, Central), Sarah Vincent (para, Central), Kristina Corvin (para, Central), Matt Goetz (HHS asst. CC coach), Melody Boltz (Fd. Svc., Central), Tracee Hewett (Fd. Svc., HHS), Gary Henry (P/T custodian), Laura Motto (Fd. Svc. sub), Tiffany Johnson (custodian, HHS) and Eric Tate (9th boys basketball coach).

*Approved the transfer of Tessa Riggs (SPED para, Colorado to SPED para, Central).

*Approved the resignations of Amy Duryea (SPED para, Sabetha), Lydia Reburn-Brown (ACE para, Central) and Terri Clancy (ACE para, Central).

*Heard a report from David Lassiter of Nabholz Construction, noting the recent completion of the south and north retaining wall on the new elementary building project. Among other things, Lassiter said the storm shelter walls will be delivered and erected this week while they are starting to work on plumbing and the storm sewer for the building.

Board members asked about the schedule of the project. While Lassiter noted it is currently two weeks behind its projected schedule, some of that is beyond the construction company’s control, with added waits for delivery of some equipment.

*Approved a resolution to publish a public notice of vote on the 2016 fiscal year budget.

*Discussed the maintenance needs of the district pertaining specifically to the utility vehicles used around the district building by maintenance staff.

With the lease on the Toolcat, an extremely versatile utility vehicle, set to run out in October, the board had to make a decision on how to move forward with the vehicle situation.

Options were to continue to lease the Toolcat (which increases from $6,000 to $7,500 this year), lease a skid steer loader ($6,000), lease a new tractor from John Deere ($3,625) or Kan-Equip ($8,783.52), or augment the current equipment.

The district will continue to look into opportunities to purchase a Toolcat, a vehicle maintenance director Mike Porter noted his staff gets a lot of use out of, but at this time the board approved the purchase of a cab and broom attachment and two tires for the Grasshopper mower from Holton Tire at a cost of $1,495. The board also approved the sale of a Massey tractor that has been sitting in storage and would need significant repairs ($3,500 to $6,000) to be effective again.

*Addressed the leak in the new gym at HHS in the ceiling area above the floor, which Porter noted was a serious issue and needed immediate action, considering the damage it could do to a $120,000 floor.

Two bids were received from Custom Sheetmetal & Roofing ($14,582) and Arnold’s Refrigeration ($13,331.48) and the board approved the bid from Arnold’s.

*Approved the BOE policy changes as recommended by KASB.

*Discussed the potential of holding a board retreat on Thursday, Sept. 17. Due to conflicts, Superintendent Stones agreed to look into shifting it to Thursday, Sept. 24.

*Approved assurances for special education in 2016, which states that the district will spend at least as much as it did in 2014-2015 on the Special Education cooperative so it will continue to get funding.

*Approved a request from band director Jayme Malsom for a trip to Branson, Mo. on March 18 and 19 to compete in a music festival. The trip would come at no cost to the district and Wittmer noted Malsom took a survey before submitting the request to make sure there would be no student conflicts.

*Discussed the potential audit of energy costs in the district. It was noted this would be different from a recent survey by Schneider Electric. Whereas Schneider surveyed energy usage to see where the district would save costs, the new company (Utility Cost Control) would look solely at rates to see if the district was getting overcharged. No action was taken.

*Received the board policies to review before the next meeting.

*Went into executive session to discuss matters pertaining to non-elected personnel for 40 minutes.

*Went into executive session to discuss teacher salary negotiations for 55 minutes.

*Approved a $0.50 raise for classified staff after returning to regular session.

*Approved a $715 raise for all administrators, except for superintendent Stones and assistant superintendent Joe Kelly.

*Approved a one-time $500 stipend for Fresh Start director Carolyn Cochren for her work moving and renovating the facility over the summer.

*Noted the presence of all board members.

*Adjourned the meeting at 9:15 p.m.