Quincy School District will spend nearly $700,000 on new turf and track at Flinn

QUINCY — With an athletic surface that has exceeded its expected lifespan, the Quincy School Board approved using health life safety bonds to pay for a new turf and track at Flinn Stadium at Wednesday’s meeting.

The board accepted bids from Byrne and Jones Sports Construction of Bridgeton, Mo. to replace the turf for $556,775 and resurface the track for $128,000. The district will use part of $7.2 million in health life safety bond budget to cover the project.

The artificial turf, which replaced a grass surface, was installed in 2011 and those surfaces generally have a 10 year lifespan. Work will begin after graduation and be completed before school begins in August.

The District will also be looking for a new Quincy High School athletic director to help oversee the project as the board formally approved the current AD Matt McClelland’s move to director of the Quincy Area Vocational Technical Center. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman discusses what could be next for the QHS AD position.

In another administrative move, the board also approved Amber Whicker as principal at Denman Elementary School.

Work will also begin this summer for the district to attempt to rectify its issues with HVAC systems throughout many of its buildings. The systems, made by Diakin, have had issues since they were installed with the first new elementary buildings in 2017.

Board members approved a $2.8 million bid from Peters Heating and Air to replace the Building E HVAC unit at QHS. The HVAC system on the QHS campus was installed in 2010 and 2011.

Building and Grounds Chairman Richard McNay, who was first elected to the School Board in 2013, told Muddy River News the district had committed to the Daikin HVAC units during the design phase of the new K-5 buildings and the Building and Grounds Committee was assured the newer Daikin units that were going into those had been significantly improved.

McNay said the Building E unit could be a blueprint for how the district proceeds to eventually replace units in other facilities.