A motion to advertise for bids for new radio equipment was unanimoulsy approved at Monday’s Hillsboro Board of Education meeting, and once the equipment is installed it should make the schools more safe, Superintendent Tim Davis said.
Davis said the school district needs to install a signal booster at the high school/middle school because currently the local police and fire department MARCS (Multi-Agency Radio Communication System) radios do not work inside the high school/middle school. He said the elementary school is “OK” and the hope is that once the signal booster is installed in the high school/middle, the elementary school will be able to “piggyback” off the signal at the high school/middle school, eliminating any emergency communication issues at the elementary.
Improvement in radio communication for emergency personnel in the school buildings “will be a safety improvement and we’re excited about that,” Davis said. “If it’s something we need to do for the safety of our students, we need to get that taken care of.”
During his report to the board, Davis also said the firm designing a new auditorium is currently working on the facility’s schematic design and is about 65 percent completed with it. The superintendent said the plan right now is to break ground on the facility in August or September.
Once construction begins, it will take 12 to 18 months to complete, Davis previously said.
There will be two entryways to the facility with seating divided into six sections for approximately 800 people. At last month’s school board meeting, Davis said one entryway with be covered, the roof will be sloped, and the structure will be located at the back of the high school/middle school between its two gymnasiums.
There will be no orchestra pit like at the former school site, but there will be a flat area about 12 feet wide in front of an elevated stage where musicians can be located.
The current building was designed so that an auditorium could be added to it.
Davis said the district’s Tomahawk food truck summer feeding program is going well, with more than 6,000 meals already served.
The summer food program started May 28 and will run Monday through Friday until Aug. 9. The exceptions are July 1-5 and Aug. 6.
The superintendent also said work is taking place on the roof of the elementary building to repair leaks the district has been dealing with for a year or two.
The Hillsboro City Schools serve food during the summer at the following sites:
Breakfast
High school, 550 U.S. Route 62 — 9 to 10 a.m.
Highland County YMCA, 201 Diamond Dr. — 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.
Lunch
High school, 550 U.S. Route 62 — 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Central office, 39 Willetsville Pike — 10:30 to 11:15 a.m.
Highland Terrace, 737 N. West St. — 11 to 11:20 a.m.
Highland Heights, 271 Harry Sauner Rd. — 11:30 to 11:45 a.m.
Cedar Woods, 312 Cedar Woods Dr. — 11:50 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.
Peace Lutheran Church, 231 Harry Sauner Rd. — 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. (Wednesday only).
YMCA building, 201 Diamond Dr. — 12:30 to 1 p.m.
Liberty Park, picnic shelter at 201 Diamond Dr. — 12:15 to 12:45 p.m.
Paint Creek Fire Station, 204 N. East St. — 1 to 1:45 p.m.
Fairgrounds at John St. entrance, 604 John St. — 2 to 2:30 p.m. (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday only).
Rocky Fork Lake North Beach, 9800 N. Beach Rd. — 2 to 2:45 p.m.
Lunch will also be served at the Boy Scouts/Dovetail, Rocky Fork Campgrounds, July 24-27 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Reach Jeff Gilliland at 937-402-2522.
