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New windows for Wapanohk and asphalt improvements not proceeding until next budget year

A pair of infrastructure projects in the School District of Mystery Lake (SDML) were pushed ahead into the next budget year by the board of trustees at their June 12 meeting.

A pair of infrastructure projects in the School District of Mystery Lake (SDML) were pushed ahead into the next budget year by the board of trustees at their June 12 meeting.

The first was a “classroom daylighting remediation project” to install 38 new windows in Wapanohk Community School that won’t be proceeding by June 30 because the only two bids received were for $700,000 and nearly $1 million, secretary-treasurer Kelly Knott told the board.

“The project will need to be reformatted and then retendered this spring,” said Knott, recommending that the board request approval from the public schools finance branch to create a capital reserve fund in the amount of $185,000 from the accumulated operating surplus for 2017−18. “Stantec is going back through all of the bids and identifying where we can reformat the scope of work to retender it in the spring.”

SDML was originally approached by public schools finance and asked to share the cost of the project.

“We agreed thinking we weren’t signing up for a million-dollar project,” said Knott, noting that no bids were received from local contractors. “Right now there’s no resource availability in town locally. We’re hoping that we can capitalize off some of the projects we’ll be launching next year and see some savings.”

The board approved Knott’s recommendation.

The second project being put off involves asphalt repairs, the removal of potholes, improved drainage and overall smoothing of outdoor surfaces to improve accessibility at R.D. Parker Collegiate, École Riverside, Deerwood School and Wapanohk Community School.

“The repairs would deplete the existing funds that we have established for accessibility projects,” said Knott. “The work cannot be completed, however, before June 30. At this time I’m recommending that the district request approval from the public school finance board for the transfer of excess operating surplus from this current year in the amount of $94,000 to fund the infrastructure upgrades identified.”

Taking this action would keep existing accessibility funds available for projects to improve accessibility at the Letkemann Theatre in RDPC and in community areas throughout the district’s schools.

“With Maple Leaf and other contractors not doing asphalt until August, September, we have money in maintenance to do that work, it’s just that it can’t occur before June 30 so it would need to be carried over,” said Knott.  “We have a lot of potholes and a lot of uneven surfaces throughout the loops and gravel areas which makes it very difficult for individuals that are in wheelchairs,” or use other mobility aids like canes. “It makes it a little more difficult for them to get in and out of the schools.”

This recommendation was also approved.

As of June 5 the district had spent about 83 per cent of its budget for the year, in line with expectations, said Knott.

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