Warren Township D121 catching up on repairs in wake of referendum passage

After passing a referendum last year that would allow Warren Township High School District 121 to receive $13.25 million more annually in tax funding, the district, which has struggled financially for years, now has the opportunity to make repairs to the district's buildings and hire additional personnel.

The district started approving some of that spending at its meeting Tuesday, during which the Board of Education approved several repairs and renovations for the district's two campuses.

One of the projects approved was improvements to the press box at the school's football field, which has sustained water damage over several years. During the meeting, the board approved a bid for $44,545 from WRB Construction that would address the district's press box concerns.

"We have some weather damage, the windows leak, the door entering the press box also leaks, which is causing water damage in there," said Patrick Keeley, the district's associate superintendent for student services.

At a previous meeting, the board discussed replacing the entire press box, but is moving ahead with a more cost-effective option that would weatherproof the existing box instead. As part of the project, the press box's windows and entry door will be replaced, as well as damaged siding, and the press box will be sealed, which will protect it from the weather in the future.

The district will also be taking on several renovations inside of both of its campuses, including door replacements, stair tread replacements and office renovations at both campuses.

Several doors at the district's campuses have been in need of repairs since 2017, according to Michael Engel, the district's assistant superintendent of business services and operations, who said that the repairs were noted in the district's 2017 Health Life Safety report.

The same report also mentions that the stair treads at the district's O’Plaine Campus need to be repaired. After hiring several new staff members, the district will also be renovating office spaces at both campuses.

The door replacement will cost no more than $20,000, the stairs will cost a maximum of $15,000 and office renovations at both campuses will cost a maximum of $15,000.