Pevely Elementary School students will have a new playground surface to enjoy next school year.
The Dunklin R-5 School District Board of Education voted unanimously on Sept. 16 to pay All Inclusive Rec in Farmington $75,885 to install the new “pour-in-play” surface for one of its two playgrounds. The district will use capital improvement funds to pay for the new surface, which is made of rubber and is designed to help absorb the impact of a fall, Dunklin Superintendent Clint Freeman said.
All Inclusive Rec was awarded the contract through a co-op program that preapproves contractors based upon factors like customer service, reliability and the ability to complete the work on time, Freeman said.
“We’ve already scheduled with All Inclusive Rec; they are a reputable company that we’ve used in the past,” Freeman said.
The new surface will be installed on the school’s playground on the south side closest to Pevely Park, replacing the current pour-in-play surface. The
playground has a swing set, climbing fixtures and slides.
The work is scheduled to begin in July, after summer school ends in late June. The project will be completed before the 2026-2027 school year begins, Freeman said.
For the project, a new 3.5-inch thick, 3,500-square-foot surface will be poured.
“The existing pour-in-play is at its life expectancy, and it’s in very bad shape,” Freeman said. “It gets broken up, crumbled, spongy, and it doesn’t meet the needs that we have.”
Freeman said the surface’s life expectancy is about 10-15 years.
“We really enjoy building new things and having new things, but we also really work hard to take care of the things,” Freeman said. “(It’s) important to our community.”
While the project will be funded in the next school year budget, Freeman said it was necessary to schedule the renovation in advance.
Since most school districts don’t have classes in session in July, the contractors usually get booked up quickly for that time of the year.