Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
The District 55 School Board took no action on an offer from the Sweet Home Economic Development Group to pay $59,500 in exchange for the district tearing out the high school tennis courts.
Board members suggested forming a committee to look at ways to fund tennis court repairs, to start organizing donations and grant applications, potentially in combination with a contribution by SHEDG.
The district and SHEDG still have a contract through next year allowing the Oregon Jamboree to use the fields south of the high school for its three-day concert and camping festival.
SHEDG, which operates the Oregon Jamboree, and the School District have been in talks about a new contract, including the offer for the tennis court removal, to replace the existing contract. By taking no action, the current contract remains in effect.
SHEDG’s offer included $25,000 plus a three-year advance on rent of $11,500 per year. The district would have been required to remove the court and replant the area with grass, providing the Jamboree with 600 or more additional seats.
The district had been waiting on an estimate for rebuilding the courts where they are or building new courts elsewhere.
The existing courts are severely cracked and in need of reconstruction, Supt. Larry Horton said. Atlas Track and Tennis estimated the construction of courts elsewhere would cost between $163,300 and $189,300.
That figure does not include demolition of the existing courts, probably another $20,000, Horton said, but it also does not take into account community donations in labor or materials to the project. The recently refurbished track had a similar estimate, and donations were able to reduce the total cost by roughly half.
To reconstruct the existing court would cost between $89,300 and $114,300, again not including any donated time or material.
New or rebuilt tennis courts could have a lifetime of more than 20 years if properly maintained, using the right paint and taking care of the surface, Business Manager Kevin Strong said. Atlas said that the worst cracking is along the painted lines on the courts. With the application of wrong paint, a chemical reaction probably led to the cracking.
The tennis courts are used during the spring, mainly by physical education classes, Sweet Home High School Principal Pat Stineff said.
Each court can accomodate four players, Horton said. With six courts, the facility can accomodate 24 students, close to a full class. Decreasing the number of courts means that students will probably be sitting out and watching.
The courts are not used often, and that’s probably because of their condition, board member Ken Roberts said. “The nets are a disaster. They’ve got big holes in them.”
The deteriorating condition probably leads to much less use of the courts in general, Roberts said.
At the time the courts were built in the 1970s, they had wide use among adults in the community and students, board member Don Hopkins said.
“They’re getting to the point they’re going to require some major patching if we don’t build new courts,” Horton said, but “my idea is we don’t spend a penny on courts. There’s a lot of projects that are still not done at a lot of schools. To start putting money into the courts isn’t appropriate.”
If SHEDG and other sources, like donations and grants, can provide enough money to take care of the courts, then he would support the effort, Horton said.
“There’s too many other things that are higher up on the priority list,” Roberts said, agreeing with Horton.
Horton’recommended the district continue this year, finish out the contract with the Jamboree, form a committee to look at grants and possible donations and then start working out the details. Roberts asked how serious the Jamboree was about moving to another site.
Strong, who also is vice president of the SHEDG Board of Directors, told him, “It’s definitely something they’re looking at.… That could be several years out.”