Bond

Phase 3

I would like to provide an update on Phase 3 of the Bond projects in Pewamo-Westphalia Community Schools.

In July 2025, the Board of Education approved, by a 4-3 vote, the installation of synthetic turf in Pirate Stadium at a cost of $2.019 million, with work originally scheduled to begin on June 1, 2026.

In mid-December, Interim Superintendent Richard Dunham identified a shortfall in available funds, with only slightly more than $1.6 million remaining for the project.

As a result, the Board decided to end the agreement with Performance Services for any Phase 3 projects, while maintaining the agreement for Phase 1 and 2 punch list items and ongoing projects. This allowed the district to renegotiate previous bids with the two primary companies responsible for the synthetic turf installation.

Through these negotiations, the district secured the turf installation for $1.355 million, plus $16,100 for the P&P bond and overhead/profit, for a total of $1,366,734—a savings of $652,266.

An additional issue during the initial bid involved removing 5,500–7,000 square yards of topsoil and spoil dirt, with quotes at $10/sq. yd. ($55,000–$70,000). The district secured a local company to remove the excess dirt at no cost, saving a minimum of $55,000.

Furthermore, the cost of widening the driveway entrance to the baseball and softball fields and installing a gravel parking lot was reduced from $77,000 to $19,200—a savings of $57,800. These improvements are planned to be completed before or during Spring Break.

After completing these projects, the district anticipates approximately $123,000 remaining to fund smaller projects across the district.

At a Special Board Meeting on February 2, 2026, the Board approved the synthetic turf installation by a 5-2 vote, and the driveway/parking lot improvements by a unanimous 7-0 vote.