Northwest R-1 School District officials recently agreed to spend nearly $100,000 to replace most of the asphalt parking lot at High Ridge Elementary. They also decided to spend almost $28,000 for a new digital sign for High Ridge Elementary, according to Board of Education documents.
The school board voted 6-0 on Oct. 3 to approve both expenditures. Board member Don Bickowski was absent from the meeting.
The board awarded a $99,971 contract to Accurate Asphalt Paving in Fenton to remove about 2,369 square feet of existing asphalt, prepare the base for new asphalt and install 2,369 square feet of new 4-inch thick asphalt. The contract also called for the company to restripe the parking lot, according to board documents.
“This pavement is at the end of its life,” said Kasey Schaffer, the school district’s director of facilities.
The district used revenue from the $28 million bond issue voters approved in April 2023 to pay for the asphalt project.
Northwest school officials previously hired S.M. Wilson & Co. in St. Louis to serve as the construction manager for the district’s bond issue projects, and the company recommended the district approve the project and award the contract to Accurate Asphalt Paving.
Work on the parking lot began Oct. 28 and all but the restriping was completed Nov. 1, Northwest district spokesman Chuck McPherson said.
He said the restriping should be finished this week, weather permitting.
Digital sign
The school board also agreed to spend $27,843 to buy a digital sign from Piros Signs in Barnhart to replace an existing one along High Ridge Boulevard. It will also remove the old sign and install the new one.
The company submitted the only bid for the project.
Mark Janiesch, the district’s chief operating officer, said Piros Signs has completed many other projects for the district, and the administration was happy with the company’s previous work.
The district also will use bond issue funds to pay for the sign, according to board documents.
The new sign will be about 4 feet tall and 6 feet wide, not including any supports or base, McPherson reported.
It is expected to be installed sometime this month, he said.
The olds sign was becoming brittle and needed to be replaced, Schaffer said.
“The new sign is multiple panels that will attach to the existing sign base,” he said. “The new sign will include digital marquee panels to stay updated on school events for the community as some of our other elementary school already use.”
Other projects
The new parking lot and sign at High Ridge Elementary are just two of many district improvement projects to be funded with bond issue revenue.
Some of the other projects include additions to be built at Northwest High School in Cedar Hill, Valley Middle School in House Springs and House Springs Elementary School, new secure entryways that have been completed at schools throughout the district, and new playgrounds that have been built at the Early Childhood Center in House Springs and at House Springs Elementary School, with more playgrounds to be built at the district’s other five elementary schools.