A non-profit organization called “Susquehanna County Recreation Center” is gearing up for a major fund-raising campaign with a goal of establishing a community center for the county … somewhere. A major obstacle to the project is finding a location to build what could be a $5 million complex. So Terry Wise and Ashley Kilmer appeared at a Blue Ridge School Board workshop on October 24th to make a pitch for some of the district’s 54 acres.
Ms. Wise, Sports and Recreation Management Professor at Keystone College, and Ms. Kilmer, with her husband owner of a stone business in South Gibson, are members of the organization’s Board of Directors. Ms. Kilmer is President of the Board.
The organization’s name has gone through several permutations as the idea has developed. On Facebook it is still known as the “Susquehanna County Athletic and Conference Facility.” That’s a hint that the scope of the project may be a bit larger than a couple of basketball courts. Ms. Kilmer and Ms. Wise spoke of a wide variety of activities that might be hosted at such a facility, which is also expected to encompass outdoor athletic facilities. The center might be expected to employ an executive director, and a “programmer,” financed by memberships (perhaps subsidized for low-income families), and maybe even rental of retail space. In fact, the project as limned by Ms. Wise appears to offer almost any service anyone could imagine.
To that end, promoters refer to it as a “community center,” and a “community-centered option” whose design would be developed through “community partnership” and “community investment.” Could it host trade shows, graduation events, drug and alcohol programs, athletic tournaments? The list goes on. It could be the only such facility in the corridor between Scranton and Binghamton.
The recreation center’s board of directors has considered properties in New Milford Borough, Susquehanna Borough, and at the Mountain View school. Alford is actually closest to the geographic center of the county, but they want something near the transportation nexus of the county, which means Interstate 81 and U.S. Route 11. And that puts Blue Ridge in the crosshairs.
The Blue Ridge board asked its solicitor, John Audi, to attend in order to provide some guidance as discussions begin. In response to his questions, the Mss. Kilmer and Wise noted that Marissa McAndrew, an attorney, is also a member of their Board of Directors. They said that any timeline at this point is unrealistic, but that they hope a fund-raising campaign can get under way by next summer. They are hoping for grants to support initial feasibility studies. And they allowed that it could take up to 12 years to complete the project. Mr. Audi later remarked, “we’ll all be a lot older before this comes to fruition.”
Yet to begin they need a location encompassing some 75,000-80,000 square feet, including outdoor facilities. A commitment by Blue Ridge would require extensive legal research, and development of a contract that will protect the school district against all contingencies. Mr. Audi said that he would canvass the state for similar projects looking for a model, and report back to the board.
In the meantime, the Blue Ridge Board’s Facilities, Grounds and Technology Committee met before the formal workshop to review in detail the work of Ron Cranage’s Maintenance Department, and Mike Stewart’s Technology shop.
What interested the committee – and later the board – most was the final condition of the floor in the cafeteria. Work over the summer blasted out a large strip of the floor to replace a section of sewer line, and now the tiled surface needs to be replaced. But with what design? Tiles matching the existing 30-year-old floor are not available. But perhaps a tile design incorporating the name of the school might be nice – in the school colors of red and white. Estimates of the cost of 3 options varied from about $7,500 to nearly $15,000.
In the end, after protracted discussion, Board President Chris Lewis argued that with some major expenditures in prospect – replacing 22 30-year-old HVAC units on the roof, refurbishing the parking lots (again) – the District has a lot more educational uses for money than worrying about whether the cafeteria floor looks “awesome.” And so, on the only business item of the evening, the Board voted to spend the least amount to replace the tiles with something approximating the rest of the floor.
Mr. Cranage also reported that the heat exchanger on the 2,500-gallon water heater was replaced at an unbudgeted cost of $26,000. The money will come from the general budget as available, before “contingency” funds are tapped. He then reported that salt, snow-melt, wood chips and 4,000 gallons of heating fuel had been laid in, and equipment repaired and tested, in preparation for winter weather.
The Maintenance Department itself saved the District over $8,000 by doing the work itself to install a new air conditioning unit in the Information Technology Department, replacing one that broke and flooded the server room; and to replace an oil furnace in the pole barn with a propane heater. Mr. Cranage and Business Manager Brian Dolan appreciated the personal attention of Mike Petcosky, whose plumbing company did much of the work on the cafeteria sewer line, in dealing with these smaller problems.
Mr. Cranage and District administrators will develop a 5-year plan to replace the rooftop HVAC units. And Mr. Dolan will ask the District’s engineers to put together a proposal covering the parking lots. Work like this will have to be budgeted, and should start as soon as classes end in June.
Mr. Stewart reported on the successful installation of a 50-kilowatt generator to maintain power to most of the campus electrical and networking systems in the event of an external power outage. He said that the district now has 45 wireless access points (wifi) and 85 surveillance cameras. Of the 149 telephones, 111 will also be maintained during a power failure. However, he recommended that the District add a couple of lines through another provider, like Adams, to provide backup in case the 18 lines provided by NEP are lost.
Mr. Stewart said that he had negotiated a new contract for copiers that will save up to about $120,000 over five years, and add 4 more copiers into the bargain. Printers are being reallocated throughout the buildings as a way to minimize the cost of maintaining individual inkjet printers in the classrooms.
And, he would like to employ a student next summer to help out in his shop. He and Mr. Cranage may be able to share the services of a student employee.
After all of that, the Board’s formal workshop was somewhat anticlimactic. But it was supplemented by delicious chili prepared by Food Service Manager Linda Cole-Koloski.
The next meeting of the Blue Ridge School Board is scheduled as a business meeting for Monday, November 7, 2016, beginning at 7:00pm in the cafeteria in the Elementary School. Don’t expect a new floor yet: the work on the cafeteria floor is scheduled for the Thanksgiving break. And business meetings don’t feature soup (or chili); you have to attend a workshop for that.