Proposed entrance at Motley School The area outlined in red will be new construction on the west side of the Motley School building better defining the entrance and providing security. The vistibule will have glass windows on both sides so waiting students can watch for parents and so the reception area can see who is entering the building. The vestibule area could be expanded to the dotted red line. The Motley School building could get a new, defined entrance and the entry to the Staples Motley High School gym could get updated bathrooms and a facelift following action at the Staples Motley School Board meeting Jan. 19.

The board authorized Paul Youngquist of architects rego + younquist, inc., to complete construction drawings and seek bids for those two projects. The motion also included new siding for the Freshwater Education District (FED) building making it three base bids.

Three other projects will be bid as alternates. Those are:

o new high school gym floor and backstops, o remodeling entry at Staples Elementary and

o windows for high school media center.

Youngquist’s preliminary estimates for the three base bids totalled $612,824.

Superintendent Mark Schmitz outlined funding sources for the projects that totalled about $556,000, not including the FED building siding.

The FED building siding is estimated at about $96,000. Schmitz noted that some of the money earned by leasing that building to FED has been set aside for maintenance.

The fund sources for the other two projects include reserves for the gym floor and activity fields as well as the deferred maintenance reserve. Another portion will come from the non-designated operating capital fund.

“Is the finance committee comfortable with this plan?” asked Brad Anderson, board member.

“Yes,” said Barb Schmitt, board chair. “We may decide to not use these funds, but we do have these balances now. I believe the dollars are here.”

Schmitt said the district could also bond for these repairs and could use the deferred maintenance dollars to make the payments.

Board member Paul Anderson noted that these were not general fund dollars, but were dollars that could only be used for capital projects.

Board member Chad Longbella brought up the bond referendum that failed in September and how it was targeted to fix roofs. He said now they’ll continue to reserve money in the budget for roofs as they’ve done in the past and repair them as needed with rubber roofs that have to be replaced every ten years.

Youngquist said that based on other projects his company is bidding, contractors are looking for work and are “really sharpening their pencils.”

Motley building

The Motley building project will define an entry on the west side of the school with the addition of reception and office space as well as a vestibule.

The new construction will enclose a space where the current double doors are just across from the cafeteria. The nurse’s office and file storage will be in that space.

The enclosure will extend west just past a security door which faces south. Construction will also extend south to form a new reception area, the principal’s office and a work area.

Visitors will now enter a glassed vestibule and check in at the reception area. The door into the main part of the school building will be locked most of the day.

Just to the north of what is now that south wall is a small conference room and the teacher’s lounge. The walls to those spaces will be removed to create a hallway.

Another wall will be removed in the media center to expand that space. The current principal’s office and reception area will be assigned other uses.

This part of the renovation is estimated at about $212,205.

High school gym

The gym entry and concession area will get a face lift including all new bathroom facilities.

The entry will get a new ceiling and new flooring and the concession area will be enclosed with rolling shutters for access.

The gym ceiling and walls will be painted and new ventilation controls installed.

New windows will provide natural light in the concession and entry area.

This part of the renovation is estimated at $304,569.

A new gym floor is one of the alternates and is estimated at $119,196.

Brad Anderson asked Youngquist if they’d done a bounce test.

“We did a walk through and about 80 percent of the floor creaked so bad, sanding wouldn’t help it,” Younquist replied.

Alternates

Two other alternate bids will be requested in addition to the base bids and the gym floor alternate.

A new entry system at the Staples Elementary building would add security to the building. The second set of doors would be moved into the building creating a larger entry area. Those would be locked for most of the day.

A new door would allow access directly into the reception area and one work station would be turned so that person could see who is in the entry.

In addition, the concrete planter at the front of the building would be removed opening the space.

This alternate is estimated at $19,564.

The third alternate would add windows to the west side of the high school media center. This one is estimated at $35,242.

Some exterior painting of the Motley building and some changes in Centennial Auditorium were part of the discussion at the facilities committee, but were not included in their recommendations at this time.

In other business the board:

o APPROVED a resolution directing the administration to make recommendations for reductions in programs and positions. The board decided they needed to be prepared because of the uncertainty of the funding from the state.

o APPROVED the hiring of Lisa Kruchten as communications coordinator and the retirement of Renee Olds as bus driver.

o ELECTED Barb Schmitt as board chair, Paul Anderson as vice chair, Chad Longbella as clerk and Mary Freeman as treasurer.

o SET the board salary at $3,214.29, the same as it has been the last several years.