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Finance director reports $2.79M spent on $7.5M bond; HVAC, Snyder project and safety upgrades under way
Summary
District finance staff told trustees the 2023–24 audit is nearing completion and that $2.79 million of a $7.5 million bond has been spent so far, including HVAC, building envelope work, safety systems and an elementary playground; the board was told county drainage work and Terracon inspections are shaping next steps on a track project.
Finance and facilities staff briefed the Florence County School District 5 board on bond spending, internal audits and ongoing construction projects at the October meeting. The finance presenter said the 23–24 general fund audit is winding down and described the bond‑project accounting to date: $7.5 million total bond authorization with $2.79 million spent so far.
The presenter itemized major expenditures: issuance costs (election and financial analysis) of about $128,000; the high‑school HVAC project at roughly $534,000 to date (about one‑third complete); Snyder phase 1 work (building envelope and windows) at about $1.6 million; a storage building at roughly $14,000; safety and security upgrades at $281,000 (new phone/PA systems and weapon‑detector equipment); renovation/maintenance spending of about $135,000; and an elementary‑school playground project at approximately $944,000. The presenter said the district was showing the required 25% match for a COPS grant in the financials for audit presentation and that some bond funds may be used temporarily to meet match rules, with any unencumbering to occur when the grant closes.
Facilities staff described issues found while excavating for a new track: an unexpectedly high water table in parts of the site (one test hit water at about 6 inches), prompting Terracon and engineers to evaluate alternatives. Florence County cleared drainage ditches near the track and the district said the water table had fallen since the initial checks; a firmer recommendation is expected at the next facilities update.
On security and technology, staff reported that classroom locks are now functional, new cameras were installed at athletic complexes and a controlled gate was added at the JES bus‑loading area. The district’s annual technology security report recorded about 283,000,000 firewall events in 30 days; 69 were flagged as major alerts and 26 escalated to the security operations center, but staff said there was no confirmed breach and backups meet insurers’ requirements.
Board members asked for follow‑up on the track options and for the finance office to bring the audit summary and any required budget adjustments to the next meeting. The finance presenter said the audit results will be presented by Miss Jackson at the next board meeting.
