By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The USD 431 Board of Education had a pair of options for renovations of the press box at Elton Brown Field outside Hoisington High School. Adding a second level to the box would cost the district approximately $90,000. Option two included cosmetic improvements to the existing box and extending the guard rail on the roof for roughly half that price. At Monday's meeting, Superintendent Patrick Crowdis put the matter to a vote.
"Looking at the money side of it, I think going ahead and expanding the rail at the top, I think our best bet is to just go with option two," he said. "That would be a cost of $46,675. With the donations from the Herres Family Foundation of approximately $13,000, that would bring our cost to about $33,675."
Dr. Blake Herres called Cardinal football games on the radio for more than 20 years before he passed away in March 2023. Donations from his foundation will offset some costs, and Crowdis said there are options to cover the remaining amount. The balance can be paid outright from capital outlay or even offset by delaying carpet replacement in three rooms as part of a regular schedule.
"The three rooms we would actually be looking at doing next summer have no issues in their carpet right now," said Crowdis. "We're not delaying an issue. Their carpet is fine. It's just in the rotation that we've set up that we're moving forward with."
The approved renovation will include nearly tripling the rooftop space with the expanded guard rail, wrapping the press box with metal panels, and replacing the windows. Bartz Construction submitted the lone bid for the work and expects to have the renovations completed before the 2024 football season.