About $185,000 in maintenance and repair projects were approved for Iola’s middle and high schools, along with the track, at Monday evening’s board meeting.
The projects include tuckpointing at the middle school, an electrical panel for fire protection at the middle school, repairs to the track and discus areas at the stadium, and mow strips at the middle and high schools. Mow strips are patches of concrete that establish breaks between the landscaping and serve to alleviate lawn care.
The work at the stadium will include taking about six core samples from the track, to check on the condition of the base, “so we have a better idea what to expect in the future,” maintenance director Aaron Cole told board members.
Initially, Cole proposed fixing cracks in the track’s surface. But as he gathered price estimates, he learned it would be beneficial to take core samples to determine the general condition of the track.
Previous repairs have included a new track surface, but not the base.
Board member Tony Leavitt questioned if he had concerns about potential problems. Cole said the evidence of cracks in the surface indicate something is happening.
“If you have cracking, you may want to investigate that,” Cole said.
Superintendent Stacy Fager said he recently talked to administrators at Burlington, which had core samples taken before they redid their track. The samples allowed them to save potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars by focusing on problem areas, rather than replacing the entire track.
Fager noted the Iola track is nearly 20 years old, and it could have been damaged by recent floods. Because the track is in Riverside Park, it is prone to flooding.
MUCH of Cole’s discussion focused on additional work not included in a previous proposal. The board had approved much of the work, but estimates came with various recommendations for other improvements.
For example, proposals to add mow strips to the high school ($19,653) and middle school ($12,667) came with an option to add a water sealant for an additional $8.50 per linear foot. Cole estimated that would add about $2,252.
The concrete work also included an option to replace the discus pads and straighten the poles at the track, for $9,375.
The cost to repair the track was $6,194. The additional core samples will add $4,500.
The tuck-pointing at the middle school was a little higher than Cole expected, at $118,623.
AN unrelated repair project also met with the board’s approval.
