School board moves forward with athletic complex project

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

If all goes as planned, in about 10 months players on visiting baseball teams will come to Charles City with their sights set on hitting one over the “Orange Monster.”

The Charles City Community School District Board of Education passed a resolution, 4-0, to tentatively approve the plans, specifications, form of contract and estimate of total cost for the athletic facility infrastructure project, and set a public hearing regarding the project for Monday, Aug. 26, at 6:15 p.m. at the middle school.

In March, the board approved the building of a grade 5-12 athletic complex that includes a softball and baseball diamond and will sit on the high school/middle school campus. The site is located on land adjacent to the high school and middle school, along Comet Drive.

“In our original conversations, there was talk about a double-high fence that we would call the ‘Orange Monster,’” said Charles City Superintendent of Schools Mike Fisher. “Our staff, and our coaches and teams thought that was a really cool idea, and on top of that, a local business has tentatively agreed to sponsor that.”

The double-high orange fence would mimic the green high left field wall in Fenway Park in Boston, where the Red Sox play. The famous structure is known as the “Green Monster.”

The intention is to break ground on the baseball and softball fields before the end of the summer, and have the complex completed and ready for use by the summer of 2020. The board designated half of the project’s cost to come from district funds. The estimated cost of the construction of the athletic facility infrastructure project is $2,314,000, a portion of which will be funded with donations.

Jerry Mitchell, the district’s building and grounds director, addressed the board about the project Monday, along with Gary Anderson of Skott & Anderson Architects. In May, the board unanimously approved a professional services contract with Skott & Anderson to be the lead designer for the new complex. The detailed plans presented Monday by the architects are over 600 pages long.

“It’s quite a bit to digest and look through,” said board President Robin Macomber.

Mitchell and Anderson answered questions from board members regarding road access to the stadiums, sewers and drainage, and the specifics of the field, such as line of vision issues for spectators and the height of the outfield walls.

“I’m very confident with the work they’ve put forward, and very comfortable to move forward with the project,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell said he has frequently consulted with softball and baseball coaches concerning the fields.

“They’ve had a lot of input,” he said. “We’re keeping them informed on everything.”

Fisher added, “We had some deep conversations, and ultimately we went with the coaches and their opinions and discretion. We consulted with multiple baseball and softball coaches.”

The board also passed a resolution, 4-0, to support the proposed use of SAVE revenue (Secure and Advanced Vision for Education) for the project. Mitchell said the district will build press boxes and dugouts outside the budget of the project.

“I took a local contractor and we took a look at a couple of them, and between him and some donations from people, we will build the press boxes and dugouts ourselves,” Mitchell said.

The board will post a notice to bidders for the project on July 30, with the bid submission date set for Aug. 22. All bids shall be received and opened in the central services office at 500 North Grand.

“I think we have a lot of local individuals who would really like to bid on it,” Mitchell said.

The board also approved, by unanimous consent, a contract for $15,766 with MidAmerican Energy to move power to the poles for the athletic complex project.

The architectural and engineering services agreement with Skott & Anderson will cost the district $25,000 for survey and premium design, $95,000 for final design, plus additional construction administration costs as needed, not to exceed $30,000.

Also Monday, the board was informed that Charles City High School has been chosen as a partner school for the Airgas High School Welding Education Initiative. CCHS is one of just 12 schools selected nationally.

Fisher credited industrial tech and FFA teachers Jim Lundberg and Bret Spurgin for their efforts in forging the partnership.

“We anticipate that this is just the beginning of that partnership,” said Fisher, who added that students who take welding classes at Charles City graduate well-prepared. “Kids walk out of our high school ready for a career,” Fisher said. “We’re so happy that we have a partnership to invest back into this program.”

It was determined that an effective welding fume collection system was needed for the award. The total cost of the equipment is $60,402, reduced by the Airgas award of $28,402, leaving the district responsible for $32,000. The board approved the welding grant proposal as presented.

The board also approved the district’s service delivery plan for special education, as presented by high school Associate Principal Larry Wolfe. The plan, developed in accordance with Iowa code, was put together by parents of eligible individuals, special education teachers, general education teachers, district administrators and the Central Rivers Area Education staff.

In other business Monday, the school board:

— Approved the appointment of Sarah Blickenderfer, high school English language arts teacher, at a salary of $38,279, starting Aug. 12.

— Approved the appointment of Tyler Mitchell, 10th-grade football coach, at a salary of $3,334, starting Aug. 20.

— Approved Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) stipends of $1,000 for TLC model teachers Darla Arends, Brenda Bailey, Donna Forsyth, Brandy Mutch, Lisa Nelson, Robert Pittman, Diane Sande and April Schweinfurth.

— Heard “culture and climate” presentations on the high school and Washington Elementary School from principals Bryan Jurrens and Kara Shannon.

— Approved a contract with the Iowa Department of Human Services to provide school-based teen parent education services through the learning connection program through June of 2023 at a cost of $6,000 annually.

— Approved a lease extension with First Congregational Society of Floyd County for rental of space for the Carrie Lane Program through July 31, 2020. Rent will remain at $420 per month.

— Approved renewal of an agreement with Big Brother/Big Sisters for rental of space at Lincoln Elementary at a cost of $25 per month to cover utilities.