District staff report progress on Rosslyn Heights courts, East High field and high school rebuild design

District staff told the Salt Lake City School District Board of Education on July 15 that several athletic and site projects are either complete or nearing completion.

Isaac Astell, phoning in to the meeting, said Rosslyn Heights has new tennis courts and a completed field; the contractor was preparing the parking lot for asphalt and the work should be finished within a few days to a week. Astell also reported that East High’s football field replacement finished the prior Thursday and the track is again open for public use after a temporary closure for safety while heavy equipment was staged.

Astell described the three design steps for the district’s larger high-school rebuilds: conceptual development, design development and schematic design. He said both rebuild projects are in design development and staff are coordinating with the city to secure an agreement that would allow work on baseball and softball fields that are on city property. He described a plan to begin groundwork after the spring season, noting Highland High’s contractor has offered flexibility to postpone work until after the baseball season if needed.

Other projects Astell reported:

- Asphalt and playground surfacing at several sites including Dilworth Elementary, Highland Park, Highland High and Bonneville; Dilworth’s asphalt project was described as a completion. - Roofing projects at Northwest Middle and Bryant Middle; those reroof efforts are significant investment items (described as slightly north of $500,000 each). - Irrigation work at East High is about 80% complete; staff were manually watering until the new sprinkler stop-and-waste is installed. - Large commercial water heaters (not residential units) are being replaced at several schools and were described as high-cost; Astell estimated these specialized heaters at roughly $150,000 each for the major systems involved.

Astell also described the Wasatch Tunnel repair project, a historic structure the district and city cost-shared at construction; the district is preparing landscape and drainage repairs, replacing the tunnel liner and adding display frames inside for school artwork — work that required approval by the city’s historical appropriateness committee.

Board members asked for clearer public communications about Rosslyn Heights completion timing and for project timelines that principals and parents can use to plan drop-off/pick-up and athletics access. Astell said communications and signage (including lawn signs with QR codes) are planned and that contractors had provided scheduling flexibility for athletics seasons.

Ending: District staff said more design meetings will come as the board receives scheduled updates; the board asked staff to post clear timelines and to coordinate with coaches and principals as construction schedules are finalized.