Huntley Middle School track repair plan eyed by DeKalb District 428 board

DeKALB – DeKalb School District 428 this week discussed a proposal to repair the track at Huntley Middle School in an effort to put funding to better, more efficient use, officials said.

The move was prompted by a conversation with district administration and coaching staff, officials said. An official vote is expected later this month.

Todd Hallaron, an eighth-grade teacher and track and field coach at Huntley Middle School in DeKalb, said repairs are needed because of the condition of the track.

“The track is extremely thin,” Hallaron said. “It is one of the thinnest tracks around. Our issues with the track – I’m going back probably 12 years here – the thickness leads to a ton of shin splints and ankle injuries. The end of the season, when you need to be at peak form, it was very difficult to train on that track day in and day out because it was so thin.”

In April, the school board originally voted to approve repairs to the track at Huntley Middle School.

Vice President Christopher Boyes questioned whether investing more money would address the problem.

“Is this fixing the problem, or is this more just putting a Band-Aid on the issue with the track?” Boyes said.

Tammy Carson, the district’s director of facility and safety operations, tried to address Boyes’ concern.

“This is completely giving the track a new life, and today’s request is adding a thickness to it to help prevent injuries,” Carson said.

An added cost in the amount of $38,600 to repair the track at Huntley Middle School puts the total project cost at $192,622, school board documents show.

Board President Deyci Ramirez said she supports the effort to invest more in the track.

“I mean, it makes sense if we’re already investing the money into it and to prevent the injuries and, of course, to take all those things into consideration,” Ramirez said. “It makes sense to invest additional money to make it last longer and to prevent injuries from happening to our athletes.”

The school board plans to put the added cost to repair the track to a vote during its May 21 meeting.

The resurfacing and repair of the track is expected to get underway this summer, according to school board documents.