Parent tells board gym ceiling leaks have persisted for years, calls for immediate fix

During the public-comment portion of its regular meeting, parent and coach Melissa Maris told the South Fayette Township School District board that water has been leaking onto the high school main-court floor "not just for a few days or weeks, but for several years," creating safety concerns and causing games and practices to be relocated.

Maris said garbage cans and taped towels have been used to collect water, that the leaks have rendered the main court unusable at times and that last year a girls varsity home game had to be moved an hour before tipoff. She told the board the leaks are "posing an imminent safety hazard to your students, athletes, faculty, and community" and requested the district take immediate action and outline a remediation plan at the next board meeting.

Maris also contrasted the lack of repairs with what she described as recent board-approved spending on stadium lighting and a new outdoor track, saying "the school board approved over $1,000,000 in total to replace the stadium lighting system ... and to purchase and install a whole new outdoor track." The board thanked her for the comment but did not provide an on-the-record timeline or detailed response during the meeting. Board policy was read aloud before public comment, including a three-minute limit and a statement that the board will not answer questions during the session.

The district did not report any immediate corrective action or timeline in this meeting transcript; Maris specifically asked that the board outline a plan of action at the next board meeting. The board later moved to a nonvoting executive session; no follow-up on facilities repairs was recorded in the public portion of this meeting.