Quakertown Community School District’s facilities committee on Oct. 9 asked the full board to authorize design and bidding work on several capital projects, including soliciting bids for a replacement chiller at the Sixth Grade Center and engaging CHA for field-site assessments and a la carte construction proposals for softball and multipurpose fields.

The committee was told the chiller at the Sixth Grade Center contains obsolete parts that Trane, the unit’s service contractor, cannot replace. Staff recommended preparing bid documents early because lead times for large HVAC equipment may be long; the project was estimated in discussion at roughly $700,000–$800,000. Committee members agreed to bring the request to the board so the budgeted replacement can be included in next year’s capital plan.

Committee members also reviewed ongoing and potential athletic-field work. Staff reported a contractor was on site to finish installation of netting and expected the work to be complete by the following day, which would allow the district to consider reinstating an outside-team baseball tournament that had been canceled. For softball, staff said they met with Richland Township to discuss placing work on upper fields (fields 5 and 6) rather than the lower cloverleaf fields because the upper fields receive less traffic. Richmond Township asked the district to consider renovating fields 5 and 6; staff asked CHA to do site visits and to prepare separate “a la carte” cost proposals so the district can compare renovating existing playing fields versus upgrading the upper fields.

Staff emphasized tradeoffs: the upper fields currently lack home-run fences, dugouts and permanent restrooms, and renovating them could cost more than improving the fields currently used. The committee asked staff to produce two separate proposals—one for the fields currently used and one for fields 5 and 6—so the board can weigh initial cost against long-term wear and scheduling.

Other capital items discussed included window leaks at the Sixth Grade Center. Staff said water is entering through masonry around window jambs and that a local vendor quoted about $20,000–$27,000 for repairs; replacing windows and doing full metal flashings would be more expensive, and staff noted metal work alone could be in the $400,000–$500,000 range. Staff will verify whether leaking originates from the roof or window systems before advancing larger work.

Playground and other facility needs were discussed. Staff said Trummer’s Will Playground is original to a 1999 installation and parts are no longer available; a mulch-surface playground similar to one referenced in Richland was quoted at roughly $369,000, while a state-of-the-art rubber surface playground could approach $500,000. A high-school dishwasher replacement was described as a smaller project (about $30,000). The visitor bleachers at the stadium were also reviewed: staff said prior paint jobs have bled through and the structure likely needs sandblasting and either replacement or significant capital work; budgetary estimates discussed ranged from roughly $200,000 to $300,000 for full remediation, and staff suggested options such as adding aluminum cladding or riveted panels to the risers.

Throughout the discussion, staff asked the committee to forward requests for CHA engagement and for permission to prepare bid documents to the board so projects can be budgeted for next year. No final contract awards or procurements were approved at the meeting; staff said they would present formal bids and cost breakdowns at a future board meeting.

The committee motioned to adjourn later in the meeting and approved adjournment by voice vote.