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High school construction advances; district reports solar-panel vandalism and field seeding delays
Summary
District project staff updated the board on high school Humanities and Science Building construction work, upcoming gym power shutdowns and landscape follow-ups. The board was told five solar panels were damaged by rock-throwing and will be replaced.
District staff gave the monthly capital bond update on June projects and upcoming summer work at Ashland High School, and reported vandalism to a campus solar array during the July 11 meeting.
Mike Freeman and Steve Mitchell presented a progress report focused on the high school renovation. Work highlighted included removal and replacement of concrete railings with metal guardrails on the Humanities Building, completion of tile murals, ongoing interior painting and drywall, restroom renovations on the South side of the building, polishing and finishing in new science classrooms, and installation of a new elevator on the humanities side. At the Science Building, staff reported demolition of existing lighting and fixtures, trenching for electrical and hydronic feeds for a generator pad and reuse of some underground hydronic lines to protect a courtyard redwood.
Mitchell said a new electrical vault had arrived to feed the gym and theater area to support improved HVAC, and that crews plan to take power down in the gym and theater between July 29 and Aug. 15 to complete work. He noted that the district expects a busy summer schedule to complete as much as possible before school starts.
Maintenance and grounds updates included recent seeding of the upper field at Frays, followed immediately by an irrigation failure that maintenance staff repaired; germination was expected to take 60 to 90 days before the field can be mowed and used for activities.
Mitchell also reported that five solar panels were damaged when rocks were thrown from the nearby railroad tracks into the solar array. "We were concerned about that and hope that it wouldn't happen, but it did," he said. He told the board the damage appeared to be from a single incident and that five panels would be replaced at an estimated cost of about $1,800. The district said the repair amount was too small to submit under the insurance policy and that staff are exploring options including signage, fences or cameras if incidents continue.
The board discussed potential mitigation and video surveillance options; staff noted the north end of the football field fence had cost roughly $28,000 as context for fencing costs. Mitchell said staff will attempt to retrieve any video evidence from nearby cameras and recommended limited public notification unless the behavior recurs.
No formal board action was required on the bond report; the board acknowledged the progress and the staff plan to continue summer construction and replacement of the damaged panels.
