The Grants Pass SD 7 board agreed in principle to use a portion of remaining full faith-and-credit bond funds to address two facilities priorities: city-water hookups at Redwood and Allendale elementary schools, and a full replacement of the Grants Pass High School (GPHS) track.

Facilities staff told the board that earlier estimates for hooking Redwood to city water — a long-discussed project because the site currently runs on wells — had been cited informally at about $1 million. Staff presented updated, lower figures at the meeting: roughly $600,000 to connect Redwood and $400,000 to connect Allendale. Board members gave a thumbs-up to allocate about $1 million of the district’s available $4.3 million (remaining from the bond program) for those hookups, subject to final cost and contingencies.

The deteriorating all-weather track at Grants Pass High School drew substantial attention. Administrators said the surface and underlying asphalt and base materials are failing and that substantial subsurface work will be required. Early estimates discussed at the meeting put the project near $1.1 million; staff scheduled an on-site contractor visit (Binion’s) to produce a formal quote and to confirm scope. The board signaled support for committing up to $1.1 million of the full faith-and-credit funds to the GPHS track, and administrators said they would discuss possible Booster Club contributions to help finance the remainder.

Administrators also reviewed other deferred-maintenance priorities and said they were finalizing a long-term deferred-maintenance plan as part of the district’s strategic planning work; that plan, staff said, is expected to be more complete by late 2025. Board members requested that staff return with firm cost estimates and a prioritized plan, and were reminded that projects must be contracted or under contract by the applicable spending deadline to meet bond rules for expenditure timing.

Board members emphasized that these commitments are contingent on final bids and contract timelines. The board gave staff direction to proceed with planning and cost confirmation and to return with contract-ready documents and updated cost estimates.