School Officials Move Forward with Final Piece for Bleachers

School officials agreed Monday to fund what appears to be the final step toward , despite a shortage of donation dollars.

The School Board approved spending $185,000 on prep work, including some electrical work underneath the new bleachers. As part of a later project, school officials hope to house a concession stand, bathrooms and team rooms under the bleachers.

Superintendent Blane McCann said doing the work now will likely save the district money, compared to contracting out for the work a year down the road.

McCann hoped construction on the $350,000 bleachers and press box would be finished by the end of September, but officials have had to push back the start date, and that completion date will be difficult to meet. The bleachers are prefabricated, and should be easy to install, but the concrete slabs the bleachers will sit on might take some time to construct. Construction is expected to start in a couple weeks, McCann added.

Shorewood is using some district funds for the project but plans to recoup the approximately $535,000 in costs through the donation campaign . D2D was started about six years ago by a group of parents and a former district principal to help address and fund repairs and renovations for the high school’s crumbling and outdated athletic facilities.

“It is going to probably take a few more years,” McCann said. “But, we want to complete the original vision for this project.”

McCann estimates the district has received about $230,000 in donations for the bleacher project, and fundraising efforts will continue.

The district did downsize the bleachers from 2,500 seats to 1,315 seats.