ELY – Nearly four months after suffering major injuries in a vehicle accident, Ely School Board chair Ray Marsnik returned to the board room Monday night and resumed his duties leading ISD 696.
In late December, Marsnik was involved in a head-on collision on Highway 169 near Robinson Lake. His wife, Pat, died in the crash. Marsnik spent four months in rehabilitation and reportedly required a hip replacement as a result of the accident. He also suffered other serious injuries.
“I missed all of you and want to thank you for all the support,” Marsnik said Monday.
Board member Rochelle Sjobeg, who took over the duties of temporary board chair in Marsnik’s absence, welcomed Marsnik and organized a welcome-back party after the meeting.
Board member Holly Coombe presented Marsnik with a belated award from the Minnesota School Board Association.
“I was honored to accept this award on your behalf in January, It is a service award for 20 years of school board service,” she said.
After receiving a standing ovation, Marsnik commented, “Some people tell me that was about 19 years too many.”
He thanked everyone again for their support.
“It was a tough ordeal. I was off my leg for 104 days and in a wheel chair,” he said. “I finally got that thing put away. Now I got a walker and that is heaven for me because I’m a person who has to keep moving. You lock me up in the house for that long, boy, I’ll tell you, you have problems. I want to thank all of you. This is a tremendous board to work with.”
Building project
In a brief business meeting, board members received a virtual update from Todd Erickson, from Kraus-Anderson, on the district’s building construction and renovation project.
The $21.5 million project is 12 months into the 16-month construction schedule with completion set for Labor Day and the beginning of the 2022-23 school year.
“The roof is complete and (crews) are working on drains and trims,” Erickson said.
Most of the work has moved inside as contractors wait for winter to end and the ground to thaw to start outside work, and for the school year to conclude to begin water line replacement and fire hydrant work.
Facility committee member Tony Colarich questioned the progress on inspection of the existing roof drains in the Memorial and Washington buildings.
“We’ve talked about some of the issues. Are they plugged? Are they damaged?” he asked.
Erickson said the existing roof drains have yet to be inspected by camera video.
“I’m sure you will,” Colarich said. “It is a very important item. I’m concerned about the condition of those drains, because they are between the walls.”
“The music rooms are surrounded by concrete block walls up to ceiling height and most of those blocks were filled with sand for sound control,” he said. “Additional sound insulation is being installed, followed by sheet rock.”
The media center, on the north side of the new building near the Washington building, is sheet rocked and heating and ventilation components are installed. The walkways into the Memorial and Washington buildings are near completion with sheet rock and doorways recently installed. He showed photographs of the new kitchen depicting the walk-in freezers and coolers and the cook areas.
“The (ceiling) ductwork is in the new gymnasium,” Erickson said. “Painting is now underway in there on the walls and joists. We have dehumidifiers running in that space to take the moisture down so we can start working on the wood floors in the near future.”
Once school is out for the year, the water line work will begin on campus.
“Our plan is to start in the alley near Pattison Street, bring the water line up the alleys, across the west side of the football field and work up toward the industrial arts area,” he said. An additional fire hydrant is required on the south side of the campus.
“May 16 is about the time when road restrictions will lift and the frost will be out,” Erickson said. “That might be optimistic, but that is our plan so we have a place to start.”
He noted that sewer line work will be delayed until school is out for the year at the beginning of June, and storm sewer construction will involve tearing up existing parking areas on campus.
The main water and sewer line replacement from Fourth Avenue east along Harvey Street will also limit traffic access and parking around the campus during the summer.
“It will basically all be torn up as we work through those areas,” Erickson said. “We will accommodate pedestrian traffic and handicap access to the buildings during summer school activities,” he added.
“We are right at 75-percent completion on our construction schedule, and as of the end of March there has been about $9.5 million spent on the project,” Erickson said. “There is about 30 percent, or $300,000, remaining in the contingency fund.”
Other business
In other action, the board:
• Approved a professional services contract with Range Mental Health Center from July 1 to June 30, 2023.
• Hired Karl Kubiak for the full-time K-12 Band Classroom Music teacher for the 2022-23 school year.
• Hired Heidi Omerza for the full-time long-term third grade teacher position from April 1 to May 1, 2022.
• Reduced the temporary AFSCME cafeteria aide position of Melissa Hart due to budgetary constraints, effective June 3.
• Changed the June regular board meeting from Monday, June13 to Wednesday, June 15 at 6 p.m.