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Reilly Stadium track to get final red surface

SALEM — Visitors to Reilly Stadium for the homecoming game Friday between the Quakers and the Canton South Wildcats can expect to see red, not just on the uniforms on the field, but also on the track.

The red final layer of the track surface is expected to be finished this week by Field Turf USA, the company hired last month to finish the job started last year by Sprinturf, which school board President Steve Bailey said was unable to complete the work due to timing issues.

The track surface which he said is comparable to a track at the collegiate level was part of the Turf and Track project the school district embarked on in 2015 with major fundraising, with a goal of installing artificial turf at the stadium besides installing the new track. The project cost had been announced at $835,000.

The field was finished in time for the 2016 football season and the base of the track was down and usable for the 2016 Star Trax 5K race and the 2017 track season. All that remained was installation of the red track surface which had been promised during the fundraising campaign.

When the work wasn’t completed this summer, Bailey said the school board and Sprinturf mutually agreed to move on, with the board hiring Field Turf USA for $223,000. Bailey noted that Sprinturf had not been paid for that part of the job.

Board member Ted Bricker updated fellow board members on the track progress during his report Monday regarding the Buildings & Grounds Committee. He also said repairs to Reilly school had been completed. The repairs to the 95-year-old building were made necessary after an ornamental cornice from above a top floor window crashed to the track in late June, prompting school officials to close the track facilities to the public until the building could be inspected and any problems resolved. The track remained closed until August, when it was determined safe to reopen and work was finishing up.

In another building and grounds matter, the board approved a lease of property on Whinnery Road to Charles F. Bricker & Sons for $4,000 per year for five years effective Jan. 1, 2018. Ted Bricker abstained from the vote due to a conflict since he’s related to the leasee. This was a continuation of something that’s been in place since 2005, with Charles F. Bricker & Sons farming the property.

In personnel matters, the board hired Drew Hart as the varsity head wrestling coach, Mindy Hiltbrand as a kindergarten teacher at Buckeye, Elizabeth Christani as school psychologist, Kristen Owens and Joyce Bowers as Hannah E. Mullins School of Practical Nursing instructors, Kirk Hoffmeister as a volunteer for the band, along with volleyball tournament workers, fall game workers and certified and classified substitutes. Volunteers approved for high school sports included Kenneth Beaumariage for wrestling, Katie Moore for girls soccer and Eric Blosser for football.

The board also offered its sincere appreciation to school psychologist Larry Truzzie, who resigned effective Sept. 5. Truzzie had already retired, but had come back.

In other business, the board accepted a donation of $6,133 from the Buckeye PTO to purchase Chromebooks for Buckeye Elementary. The students at Buckeye were going to have access to iPads, but now they’ll also have access to Chromebooks, just like the rest of the student body. The board approved a contract with KLG Mobile Intensive for medical services for Salem High School at a rate of $165 per game to cover events, with 19 events to be covered.

mgreier@salemnews.net

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