CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield Area School District Board of Directors revisited its plans for renovating and expanding the high school as well as the options being proposed for the campus’ tennis courts at Monday night’s combined committee and board meetings.
District Architect J. Greer Hayden of HHSDR Architects/Engineers had visited the board Dec. 5. Then, he was directed to explore expanding the proposed gymnasium from 500 seats back to 1,000 seats and the possible relocation of the tennis courts to a corner of the student parking lot.
Hayden spent Monday meeting with the high school staff regarding the natatorium, gymnasium and music department while also following up with the high school science department. He said they’ll continue to work toward resolving issues in the upcoming weeks.
In June, the board approved expanding the high school and turning the campus into grades seven through twelve. At the time, the board reduced the project costs by $3,096,000 when it deleted classroom additions and reduced gymnasium and office space.
The board was initially embarking upon a $35,326,500 high school renovation and expansion project in June, which upon discussions lessened it to $32,230,500. But modifications proposed Dec. 5 caused costs to rise by $1,255,000.
The project costs have continued upward to $34,025,500 with the built-in changes that were sought two weeks ago. The board hasn’t taken any official action.
Gymnasium
Hayden presented a 1,000-seat gymnasium with bleachers on opposing sides and being split with 600 seats for home and 400 seats for visitors. He didn’t expand the gymnasium outward because of the hillside and had to reconfigure the layout of the high school’s music and technical services departments.
Board member Rick Schickling didn’t believe they should be considering the costs of the additional 500 seats with declining student enrollment and sufficient capacity for maximum attendance at sporting events.
Board President Dave Glass estimated 600-plus attended Clearfield’s wrestling match against Bald Eagle Area on Thursday night. He said Bald Eagle Area had well-traveled fans and believed Clearfield’s match with Philipsburg-Osceola would give them an idea regarding sporting event attendance.
Schickling countered, saying the costs of expanding the proposed gymnasium wasn’t worth it for “one or two events” each year. Glass said he wasn’t concerned so much about the seating capacity as he was for having the capabilities of running almost two full-sized basketball courts in practice situations.
During the public comment session, Gail Ralston of Clearfield said they had two large gymnasiums that were accompanied by two, smaller auxiliary gymnasiums when she was in high school. She said these facilities were used for all sports activities when the student populations were at their highest.
According to her, the high school gymnasium is 7,700 square feet; the middle school gymnasium is 8,928 square feet; and the Clearfield Elementary School gymnasium is 7,500 square feet. She noted the district has a declining student population, and it has more gymnasium area than when it had a larger student population.
Ralston said the high school’s gymnasium has a 990 seating capacity, while it’s 700 at the middle school and 385 at the CES. She pointed out that the maximum attendance for sporting events at the high school is between 500 – 700 spectators, and there’s close circuit television broadcasting available for over-capacity crowds.
“I don’t believe we have ever exceeded the fire code limitations for an event,” she said. “I can understand the need for square footage for student use in gym class but not for additional audience seating, especially since Clearfield’s population is also declining. One existing high school gym has almost 1,000 seats.”
Before the meeting adjourned, Glass said his support of an expanded gymnasium would depend on resolving the basement elevator situation. During his presentation, Hayden told the board that the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements stipulate an elevator be installed, running from the basement area to the swimming pool spectator area.
Hayden said the elevator installation, however, would reduce the space of an already small junior high wrestling room area. He told the board he’d look into possibly turning the elevator so that it doesn’t infringe upon the junior high wrestling room.
Hayden said he would also explore the wall standing between the junior high wrestling room and weight room. If it isn’t a weight-bearing wall, it could be removed to expand the junior high wrestling room. In addition, he said they’d investigate digging out the crawl space, which used to house the old rifle range, to possibly create another wrestling room.
Tennis Courts
Hayden said the board could maintain the current location of the tennis courts and opt for a “5-year fix.” He said it wouldn’t require any reconstructing and be temporarily resolving the issue while costing the district the least at approximately $200,000.
He said the district could construct four new tennis courts at the end of the band parking lot behind the football stadium. However, according to him, this would disrupt the javelin throw area for track and field. He said this option would cost approximately $400,000.
At the Dec. 5 meeting, Assistant Principal Tim Janocko suggested the district construct four new tennis courts in a corner of the student parking lot. He said it wasn’t regularly used space, and if relocated there, the current tennis courts could become handicapped parking for baseball and softball games.
Hayden said the construction of the tennis courts there would cost the district approximately $480,000. If the district wanted to convert the current six courts into parking and a connecting driveway, it would cost an additional $160,000.
Finally, Hayden said the district could construct four new courts in their current location, which would cost $460,000. However, he had previously noted that sub-surface water has created ongoing drainage problems in this location.
When asked by board member Mary Anne Jackson, Hayden indicated new tennis court pavement would last approximately 12 years. The surface, he said, would probably need recoated sooner and likely in about 7 years, but it would depend on the usage and routine maintenance of the tennis courts.
Before closing her public comments, Ralston also asked the board if its current bond issue for the high school renovations included money for the larger gymnasium and the proposed changes to the grounds.
“Or are you planning to use monies from the capital fund reserve?” she asked. She told the board she was referencing the football turf, stadium, athletic fields and tennis courts. She said it was her understanding that the swimming pool renovations were included.
Superintendent Dr. Thomas B. Otto said the board was there to “hear” concerns from people during public comment, not to be “interviewed.” He said it places them in a “handicapped” position, as they’re not always prepared with answers in front of them.
Ralston sought answers regarding how the additional items would affect the funding and housing for grades 5 and 6 at the CES. She also wanted to know when the public could anticipate learning about the ongoing litigation surrounding the Girard-Goshen Elementary School.
“You can’t just focus it all at the high school. I know the Girard-Goshen litigation opens another can of worms. But the public deserves to know,” she said.
Glass said the Girard-Goshen litigation was still ongoing, and the board is constantly being updated. However, he said it doesn’t get discussed publicly, and they haven’t said anything for a reason.
“We ask for your patience. It hasn’t been forgotten,” he said.