Contractor says Bethany high school track surface expected within weeks; drainage, landscaping follow

A contractor updating the Bethany Board of Education on Aug. 11 said delivery of the synthetic track surface is expected next week and that installation should take about two weeks, with landscaping and cleanup to follow. The update matters because work remaining — track surface installation, drainage fixes and final site repairs — determines when the facility will be usable for school athletics and community events. According to the contractor, crews have finished the preparatory work under the surface and will begin laying the track when the material arrives. "We're scheduled for delivery ... of the track surface itself. It comes in a few semis, and then we'll start laying that down," the contractor said. He added that installation will require dry conditions and ‘‘about 2 weeks, of physical time to lay it down." The contractor also said gates were scheduled to be installed the next day. Board members asked about ground disturbance where bleachers were moved; the contractor said the bleacher anchors were embedded in concrete and that crews patched anchor holes and regraded the area, though some cracks remain. The contractor also described new concrete sidewalks and fence installation around the bleachers and said the bleachers have been repositioned to center on the 50-yard line. Drainage was a repeated concern. The contractor said crews will install roughly a 160-foot French drain on the west side near the high-jump area to reduce ponding where the field elevation and existing concrete/curve transitions cause water to collect. "We'll add in some French drain, which will help a lot of drainage that's on the west side of the track right near the high jump, which is kind of where the ponding is occurring," he said. He described a half-inch lip between the asphalt and concrete curves that will be filled when the track surface is applied so that water will flow off the track surface once installation is complete. On costs, the contractor said the only recent budget change was an earlier width adjustment to the track. He reported additional, relatively small, unplanned items — drainage, irrigation, concrete and electrical work — and said landscaping savings so far mean the project is projecting “no change or actually a deduct to the current contract.” He said he would return next month with firm contract figures once the track surface is installed. Board members and the contractor discussed access routes for large equipment (primarily from the softball-field side) and potential turf repairs afterward. No formal action was taken; this was an informational update. The board will receive a final cost reconciliation and a completion update once installation and punch-list items are finished.