Southgate board approves $56,500 design contract for Anderson High track replacement

Southgate Community School District Board of Education on July 15 approved a $56,500 contract for architectural and engineering services to design and assist with bidding for the Anderson High School track replacement project.

The board voted to award the contract to a firm identified in the staff report as “the collaborative,” accepting a proposal that totals $52,500 in design fees plus $4,000 in reimbursables for a $56,500 not-to-exceed contract. Gary Campbell, representing Plantarion RealPoint, told the board the services will include evaluation, design, and bid assistance and that design work is expected to take about 12 to 14 weeks with bidding and award taking roughly five more weeks.

The project scope described to the board calls for full removal of the track’s top layer and repair of any damaged base material exposed during removal. Campbell said the team plans to refresh associated event pits — including the high jump, long jump and pole vault pits — at the same time. He also said the district is accounting for a new timing system and may need to install additional conduit under the track to connect timing equipment to the press box.

Campbell said the staff has carried an allowance of about $750,000 for construction costs; the architect’s fee was calculated at 7% of that construction allowance, and staff said the architect’s fee would be adjusted and credited back to the district if the project comes in under budget. Construction was described as planned for spring or summer 2026, with the actual construction window expected to be four to six weeks and to avoid conflicts with spring sports seasons.

Board members asked about expected life of a new track and about existing damage. Campbell said resurfacing cycles depend on materials and subbase but can range from 5–7 years for lower-end surfaces up to 15 years for higher-end installations. He described “some underlying cracks coming through the surface” and said contractors have recommended repairing base layers if needed once the top layer is removed.

A motion to approve the design contract not to exceed $56,500 was made by Dr. Pomponio; the motion carried.

The project team indicated the finished track will be repainted to meet Michigan High School Athletic (MHSA) guidelines and that the new surface will be presented in a silver/gray color scheme to match district branding.

Provenance: Transcript discussion begins at 07/15/2025 19:35:30 (transcript block start ~395.30s) and continues through remarks about construction allowance and timing (~618.56s).