Synthetic turf idea for schools scrapped

By Sue Loughlin
The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE September 06, 2008 10:46 pm

— A proposal to install synthetic turf football fields at Terre Haute North, South and West Vigo high schools has been scrapped because a committee says it is unable to raise sufficient matching funds.
The proposal to use school-district bond refinancing dollars “is off the table completely,” said Superintendent Dan Tanoos.
In May 2007, the School Board agreed to dedicate $980,000 in refinancing money to the project, but the remainder of the cost would have to be privately raised. At the time, the cost was estimated at $1.7 million to $2.1 million.
A school-district committee formed to raise funds privately “has met and decided they would not be able to secure donations matching the $980,000 allocated by the board of trustees for this project,” according to information in the board agenda.
“The committee had an awesome task to find that money,” Tanoos said Friday.
On Monday, the School Board and superintendent will discuss possible uses of the $980,000 in refinancing money, which must be spent by May 31, 2009.
While the school district will not set aside funds for synthetic turf fields, Tanoos said he would be willing to consider a proposal if a private donor wanted to fund the entire project.
Tanoos would not say what recommendations he might have for use of the $980,000 bond refinancing money. “I want to hear board input first,” he said. The funding can’t be used for personnel.
The funding might be needed in the Capital Projects Fund budget, which could suffer some funding losses because of the “circuit breaker,” or property tax caps.
“We need to make sure we have money to finish the projects we’ve started,” Tanoos said.
Board member Gene Shike, who in 2007 advocated using bond refinancing money for synthetic turf at the three football fields, saw it as a good opportunity at the time.
“It hasn’t worked out and they were having difficulty getting pledges,” Shike said.
The school district has other needs, and it appears the community has other priorities for use of the funds. “If there are other places we can justify using [bond refinancing money], that’s great, too,” Shike said.
Norm Loudermilk, president of the Terre Haute North Quarterback Club, said he hadn’t heard anything official about a decision related to synthetic turf.
When the School Board called for the three schools to raise private matching funds, “I thought it was a vote to guarantee failure,” Loudermilk said. The three high schools and their parent boosters “can’t be expected to raise that much money,” he said.
He believes that if Terre Haute North and South continue to play in the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference, they need to have competitive facilities.
The School Board will meet at 7 p.m. Monday in the administration building, 686 Wabash Ave.
In other matters, the board will consider the 2009 budget.
It also will discuss a proposal by board member Joe Minnis to contribute up to $25,000 annually from the general fund to the Vigo County Education Foundation. It would be on a dollar-for-dollar, matching-fund basis and is aimed at encouraging other individuals and organizations to contribute to the foundation.
A new state law has made it possible for school districts to contribute general-fund money on a matching basis to a qualified education foundation.
Sue Loughlin can be reached at (812) 231-4235 or sue.loughlin@tribstar.com.