Parkway schools official cites need for stadium repairs

ROCKFORD - Panther Stadium will likely need upgrades in the near future as seats on the home side continue to decay.

Athletic director Doug Hughes told Parkway Local Schools Board of Education members at Tuesday's meeting that the home football bleachers are becoming a cause for concern.

"Twice this year I was out before the games getting set up and on the bottom rail where the two boards meet, one gave way. We had to put cones around that area," he said.

Hughes said he received quotes from two companies, Farnham Equipment Co. of Sidney and Dant Clayton of Louisville, Ky. Farnham representatives found no problems with the current foundation, Hughes said, and gave a $90,000 estimate to renovate the bleachers. Dant Clayton offered a $276,445 estimate to completely overhaul the bleachers.

The bleachers are wooden with an aluminum cover. The original wooden bleachers were installed in the 1960s, treasurer Debra Pierce said.

Board member Matt Swygart expressed discomfort with deciding how to proceed without more estimates. The board asked Hughes to gather more estimates before the Feb. 9 meeting.

Hughes said he would like the work to be completed before the 2016 football season. However, superintendent Greg Puthoff after the meeting said a timeline hadn't been set.

"We know we need to do it soon. We are probably still safe for this year. We have it inspected every year, so if they pass inspection, we would be fine. If they don't, we could always fix the immediate need and make sure they're safe for a year," he said.

"Our visitors' side has a wall that's beginning to fall," he continued. "That also needs to be fixed. We know that as well."

Puthoff said he is gathering estimates for a new wall.

In other business, board members,

• learned from elementary school principal Mark Esselstein the school had received more than $1,500 from Box Tops for Education from the first half of the school year. He thanked students, parents and grandparents for participating. He asked donors to trim the tabs on the dotted lines to ensure the process continues to run smoothly.

• approved increasing pay for athletic/activity bus drivers from $8.75 to $10 per hour and increasing substitute driver pay from $16 to $18 per hour effective Saturday. Pierce said the increase was to attract bus drivers in the face of a countywide shortage.

• approved a new mileage rate of 54 cents per mile in keeping with the IRS standard mileage rate, down from 57.5 cents in 2015.

• welcomed new member Jeffrey Armstrong and appointed Tom Lyons board president during an organizational meeting.