Dixon Public Schools calls special meeting to discuss facilities plan

DIXON – The Dixon Public Schools Board wants to discuss the facilities plan in a special session at 6 p.m. Monday at the administration office on 1335 Franklin Grove Road.

Those wishing to submit public comment should submit requests to either board President Linda Webner or Superintendent Margo Empen by noon Monday.

During the board’s regular meeting Sept. 21, it was presented with a revised 10-year plan for facility improvements by Kevin Schultz, director of building and grounds.

He said the emergency repair at Jefferson Elementary stemming from the burst water pipe during the Fourth of July weekend required revisions of the entire 10-year plan.

While examining the document, board member Melissa Gates took issue with an element of the schedule, noting that blacktop resealing projects were scheduled for Washington, Jefferson and Reagan schools, but improvements to the playground at Jefferson won’t be addressed until 2025-26 at the earliest.

“It’s pretty bad back there,” she said.

The blacktop resealing is a preventive maintenance project to extend the life of a work project from the original 10-year facilities project, an undertaking that included structural improvements throughout the district.

In an interview after the meeting, Schultz said preventive maintenance has been incorporated in the facilities plan since that last major undertaking.

“We have heard loud and clear from the community that for decades the schools have let things go,” he said.

Preventive maintenance aims to address it.

In fact, the plan includes a health and safety review of the facilities by the architect of the last major upgrade that will take place during the 2024-25 school year. If it identifies any construction needs, those will have to be incorporated into the plan.

The factors in determining priorities have been compounded by the increases in prices for materials and manufactured items and supply chains that have hampered construction since the pandemic.

Schultz said replacement doors for summer projects didn’t arrive until mid-July, and the order was incomplete, delaying one portion of the work until after Labor Day.

He wants to order supplies for next summer’s projects soon to ensure they are in place so work can begin in a timely fashion; hence the need to approve the facilities plan.

The other factor that moves some projects up on the schedule is when there are matching grants to pay for something. The district tries not to squander those opportunities, but that can mean rearranging the schedule.

Schultz said that when a project emerges because it creates conditions that are “imminently dangerous or a safety issue,” it becomes a priority.

“But with that being said, there is also a limitation of the funding that we have available,” he said. “So it is a very fine juggling act to differentiate between those two aspects and come up with a 10-year plan.”

He said the plan is a living document and can be changed.

It was Empen who suggested the board schedule a special meeting and asked board members to submit a list of questions about the plan as presented.

Gates commended Schultz and his team for the summer work at Madison, which included security entrance and interior renovations.

“[They did] a beautiful job,” she said.

Board member Jon Wadsworth asked about the comprehensive nature of the facilities plan.

Wagner, who is the board president, said “we are way better off than we were” from 10 years ago. The current plan is more exacting but far less daunting than the previous one.

Schultz said there are some lingering projects, such as one at the elementary buildings.

“For example, they removed a lot of windows out of the classrooms for energy-efficiency reasons,” he said. “They infilled them with brick and block. And when they did that, not all of the waterproofing was done correctly. So moisture shows up on the inside of the plaster and in the paint.”

Schultz would like to tear out the infills and put in a better grade of window that can maintain heat and air efficiency.

“That brings back natural lighting and improves the overall learning environment for students,” he said.

Dixon Public Schools

Facilities projects

School year 2021-22

Dixon High School: Installed tech zone wall and furniture.

Reagan Middle School: Built wall for art room storage.

Madison Elementary: Moved office to art room, replaced water piping in building, installed fire detection in teachers’ lounge, IT and stage areas.

Jefferson Elementary: Reworked concrete on east end of building, installed security entrance requiring fob keys.

Washington Elementary: Removed floor tiling containing asbestos, installed new tile, replaced 10 cafeteria tables, installed security entrance requiring fob keys, other asbestos and flooring.

School year 2020-21

Dixon High School: Installed lighting at football field, installed security entrance requiring fob keys.

Reagan Middle School: Upgraded controls for heat, air and ventilation.

Madison Elementary: Replaced cafeteria plumbing; other cafeteria renovations; replaced five cafeteria tables; upgraded controls for heat, air and ventilation; renovated plumbing in teacher lounge; installed flooring in teachers’ restroom.

Jefferson Elementary: Subdivided library to create classroom space.

Washington Elementary: Began removal of asbestos from flooring, installed flooring for upper-story rooms.

Planned projects

2022-23

Dixon High School: Retrofit dimmer closet and lighting booth in auditorium, new cafeteria tables, blacktop resealing and line painting

Reagan Middle School: Replace kitchen roof heat, fix cracks and resealed blacktop, update vape systems and gymnasium sound boards

Madison Elementary: Reroof garages

Jefferson Elementary: Install camera systems, reseal blacktop, replace stairway treads

Washington Elementary: Remove any remaining flooring with asbestos, reinstall flooring, reseal blacktop, replace stairway tread