Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Perplexed by the School Board’s reaction to their offer of $100,000 to remove the tennis courts at Sweet Home High School, members of the Sweet Home Economic Development Group Board of Directors agreed last week to leave the offer on the table for an additional 60 days.
District 55 School Board members on Oct. 8 responded to SHEDG’s offer with a counterproposal that asks for all of the $100,000, without any of the $75,000 in matching funds that was part of the original proposal.
SHEDG previously had offered the district $25,000 cash if the district would remove the high school tennis courts, providing additional space for the Oregon Jamboree, for growing soccer programs and other sports programs. In addition, SHEDG agreed to provide an additional $25,000 per year over three years if the district could find matching funds, a total of $100,000 to be contributed by SHEDG.
Those funds would be available for the district for any purpose, whether building new tennis courts, a sports complex or anything else the board might deem appropriate. School Board members had been under the impression that the funds were restricted to sports during their Oct. 8 meeting. SHEDG Board members clarified that the funds could be used for anything during their meeting on Oct. 17.
The School Board responded to the offer by requesting that SHEDG donate the entire $100,000 this year with no match requirement.
“This would allow the district to not only tear down the existing courts, but we could plant the fields and begin construction on at least four tennis courts,” Supt. Larry Horton said in a letter to the SHEDG Board. “The plan is to have the courts ready for school use in September 2008. Without the entire $100,000 there is no way we can consider replacement of any tennis courts in the immediate future.”
The district would use that cash, with a potential grant and local help from contractors, to remove the existing courts and build new ones, Horton said.
At the SHEDG Board’s regular meeting on Oct. 17, the board clarified that the offer had no strings attached as far as how the School Board could use the money. Following discussion, the board also “clarified” its offer to allow the district to receive all $100,000 as eraly as this year if it could raise $75,000 in matching funds.
SHEDG Board President Ron Moore had told the School Board initially that the board might consider releasing all of the funds if the match were raised, but he also said he couldn’t speak for the board.
“It’s a gift that we’re trying to give them,” Moore said.
“I think we’re back to where we were last time,” SHEDG Director Elmer Riemer said, referring to a similar but smaller offer made a couple of years ago.
“We’re trying to give the schools $100,000, and we only use it one week a year,” he said.
Moore initially said he believes SHEDG has two options: Either the offer on the table or “we’re done.”
The SHEDG Board also considered two other options, one to provide the cash up front with no rental fees for the use of the grounds for some number of years into the future and the one the board chose, offering the money immediately if the match could be raised.
Moore said he thinks the school district could raise the money, the same way the Weddle Bridge repair project raised $20,000 match in three months to qualify the city to claim $20,000 in SHEDG funds.
“I strongly believe they’ll get the match,” Moore said.
Such an offer would be in the district’s interest, Jamboree Event Manager Peter LaPonte said. The Jamboree uses the grounds seven days a year. The district uses them 358 days a year.
“It’s not like the problem goes away when we say, you do what you want with the tennis courts (and withdraw the offer),” LaPonte said.
The district’s insurance carrier has told district officials the two easternmost courts are unusable, Horton said at the School Board meeting on Oct. 8.
The remaining four courts are cracked, some with weeds growing up through them.
“It’s not going to take long till they’re all condemned,” Moore said. “It needs to be fixed.”
The Jamboree could use the extra space, he said, but it’s not critical.
Reorganizing the fields would cause some difficulties the first year, LaPonte said. Those could be corrected in the second year, but by the third year, the Jamboree may have its own property and no longer would need to hold the concert on the high school fields.
The new space might accommodate perhaps 500 new concertgoers, LaPonte said, but that figure is hard to calculate right now.
The main thing removing the courts would do for the Jamboree is open up the gates and entry area, making more room for the crowds to ebb and flow within the Jamboree grounds, Moore said.
“It lets out a couple of notches on the belt,” LaPonte said.
“Let’s be positive,” SHEDG Director John Wittwer said. “Let’s restate our gift offer.”
While restating it, the board would “clarify” that it was willing to accelerate payment based on what the district raised in matching funds, he said.
The SHEDG Board agreed with Wittwer’s suggestion. Kevin Strong, who is the District 55 business manager, abstained and left the room during the discussion.