Board hears bond update; district expects proceeds Feb. 18 and begins bids for flooring, fields and courts

L'Anse Creuse Public Schools officials told the board on Jan. 27 that the district expects bond proceeds to arrive on Feb. 18 and that staff and bond partners are preparing bids and starting design work for a set of first‑series projects.

The update, presented by Superintendent Keith Howell and architects and engineers from Partners in Architecture and Bart Mallow & Partners, covered three elementary flooring replacements, synthetic turf and dugout refurbishments for varsity baseball and softball at both high schools, replacement of tennis courts at L'Anse Creuse High School North, striping for eight pickleball courts, pool dehumidification and filtration work, district pavement repairs, and other infrastructure items. Finance lead Kathy Coonan told the board, “Wewe're waiting for the money...we're hoping to close on the 18th of February.”

Why it matters: the projects shown are part of the bond program voters approved in November and include both visible amenities (athletic fields, courts) and critical systems (HVAC, pool filtration, roofs and buses). Several items already have design documents or bid packages on the street; the district is staging work so it can use the coming summer construction window efficiently.

Key details from the presentation

- Flooring: The first group of elementary schools listed for flooring replacement are Lobestell, Tennis Wood and Yaks (presentation slides showed existing photos and proposed finish plans). Corridors are planned as resilient (hard) flooring, with classrooms and offices to receive carpet; some existing terrazzo will be refinished.

- Athletic fields and courts: Partners in Architecture described plans to remove natural turf at varsity baseball and softball fields and install synthetic turf, upgrade fencing and backstops, refurbish dugouts and provide press boxes and practice areas. High School North tennis courts will be replaced with a long‑life post‑tension concrete surface; four existing courts will be striped to create eight pickleball courts. Mike Malone, principal at Partners in Architecture, said the field designs are “still in process” as staff and athletic coordinators refine site layouts.

- Pool and HVAC: Presenters said pool dehumidification and filtration upgrades are included in the series‑1 work. The team noted some sequencing changes between sites but said budget amounts remained consistent across alternatives.

- Schedule and procurement: Bids for several projects were extended to give manufacturers extra time; the flooring bid opening is set for Feb. 3 and the board will receive the first round of bid results on Feb. 10. The presenters said the district is pursuing district‑wide unit pricing for general conditions (dumpsters, porta‑johns, site logistics) to realize economies of scale.

- Buses and roofs: Kathy Coonan clarified that buses and some roofing work are approved and ready to proceed once bond proceeds arrive; the number of buses referenced in the presentation was four or five (presenters gave slightly different counts). A board member noted that the buses had already been approved by committee and are awaiting the funds to be purchased.

Board reaction and next steps

Board members praised the renderings and asked for public facing ‘before‑and‑after’ renderings that the district will post on its website. Trustees pressed staff and the bond team to keep refining field layouts, ensure consistency across athletic sites and continue community outreach as designs proceed toward bid documents. Presenters said they will come back with bid summaries and recommended awards when bids are opened.

The presentation emphasized that the items discussed are “series 1” bond projects and that staff will continue to sequence later projects to avoid undoing recently completed work.