School board approves $66,607 in repairs

The high school football field will be repaired.

By MARY SMITH

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

MINERAL RIDGE — Weathersfield Local Schools board of education approved Wednesday $30,000 worth of emergency repairs and landscaping for the high school football field.

The work at the Joe Lane Sports Complex is part of a total of $66,607 in summer projects around the school district.

The football field, completed in summer 2001, does not meet Ohio High School Athletic Association standards, Superintendent Michael Hanshaw said. He added that the district’s attorneys have pursued whether the original builder could be called upon to correct the problems but were told it’s too late to have the builder cover the cost.

Hanshaw said the crown in the center of the field is 18 inches too high, causing the sides of the field to start caving in. “I don’t want any kids getting hurt — not football players, not band members,” he said.

Don Hall Excavating Inc. of Austintown will make repairs to the field with the cost to be covered by the athletic department. JJLS Professional Landscape Contractors of Niles will restore the field, and the athletic department will also cover the cost.

Summer projects

Summer 2007 building and grounds projects in the district are:

U Districtwide: Fill and grade tennis court area, convert old concessions stand area to a parking lot, put in steps to the practice field from the locker room (railroad ties have been donated), repair and furnish drainage for field behind the middle school, seal/coat Joe Lane Drive and the work on the football field for total of $7,000 additional to the football field.

U Projects at the high school will include: carpeting the chorus room, carpet cleaning, patch coat/seal new asphalt areas, paint lockers and A and B wings, storage loft in art room, new clocks for classrooms, auditorium curtains, paint floor of walk-in cooler, and replace cafeteria kitchen stainless steel backer board, for a total of $37,282.

U Seaborn Elementary work will include: Paint all hallway ceilings, the first- and second-grade wing classrooms and the ceiling in the cafeteria, purchase portable risers, purchase four cafeteria tables, seal all classroom windows, tile classrooms 2C, 3D and 4C, purchase a barrel dolly, carpet cleaning, purchase leaf blower, ventilation fan for gymnasium, patch and seal coat all asphalt at a total cost of $16,811.

U Middle school projects include: Replace whiteboards in all classrooms, paint cafeteria walls and ceiling and hallways and stairwells, clean carpet, replace tile in a classroom, repair broken lockers, screens for classrooms windows and patch and seal coat asphalt areas and re-stripe at a total cost of $5,514.

Technology plan

The board also approved a continuation of its district technology plan for grades kindergarten through 12 for the 2007 to 2008 school year, and will spend $38,000 in technology projects.

An estimated 30 new computers will be bought for the high school lab, and five or six of the computers will be purchased for teachers that need to be upgraded.

The district will also buy several printers, projectors and servers in each building. Grade books for teachers are being computerized in the district.