Valley High School pool, auditorium focus of $1.3M in spending

The New Kensington-­Arnold School District will spend nearly $1.3 million on projects at the high school and two of the district’s three elementary schools.

The lion’s share — a little more than $1 million — will pay for renovations at the pool and auditorium at Valley High School.

About $671,000 is being spent on the pool. Replacing the pool’s HVAC system will cost about $560,000, and replacing its boiler will cost about $110,000. Both will be done through an energy savings project administered by The Efficiency Network and paid for from the district’s capital projects reserves.

The district’s two capital projects funds total about $5.14 million.

District Business Manager Jeff McVey could not say when that work will start.

McVey said the pool will be drained by the end of this month so its lining and intake jets can be replaced. In December, the board hired HD Liners $88,000 for that work, with that money also coming from capital projects.

The district is spending nearly $340,000 in the high school auditorium.

The district will pay Pittsburgh Stage close to $180,000 to replace theatrical lighting and nearly $159,000 to replace stage rigging.

McVey said that work is expected to be done late this year or in early 2024.

The district is spending more than $190,000 on the cafeteria at H.D. Berkey Elementary, which houses first and second grade students in Arnold.

The board approved paying CurranTaylor Inc. close to $168,000 to replace the meal serving line at the elementary school and $25,800 for a new dishwasher. That spending will be covered by the food service fund, which has about $392,000 in it.

McVey said the work will be done this summer.

H.D. Berkey principal Nicole Roberts previously said the serving line was not in good condition and frequently has problems. She said the serving line will be moved out from the kitchen.

Board member Nicholas DiCarolis said the remodeling will give staff more room to work and students more room to get their lunches.

“The layout of a serving line might not seem very important to the average person, but when teaching 6- and 7-year-olds how to walk through a line and pick out their food, the design becomes essential,” Roberts said. “The new serving line at H.D. Berkey has been designed not only to make it easier for the students to get their lunches, but also to allow adults from the cafeteria to help the students as they go through the line.”

The board also approved a change order of about $54,300 for the energy savings projects involving the replacement of HVAC equipment at Martin Elementary, the district’s kindergarten school in New Kensington.

The project, with The Efficiency Network, is replacing all of the unit ventilators, or univents, in every school building throughout the district, McVey said. Univents mix fresh outside air with air from the room, then heat the air and blow it back into the room.

HVAC equipment that is not working or in need of major repair also is being replaced through the project.

The change order is to replace a unit at Martin that failed and was not part of the original contract, McVey said.