Posted: June 24, 2009

Wauwatosa West High School will be getting new concession and public restroom facilities at its athletic fields.

The project is the first athletic facility improvement to materialize out the recommendations a planning committee made three years ago. Work is scheduled to begin in July, pending city approval, and it will be completed in October.

When complete, the building will provide space for concession sales, equipment storage and public restrooms, which will be open for residents using the tennis courts or track for recreation, as well as during home competitions. Johnson likened it to the facility already in use at the Whitman Middle School field.

Fundraising critical

The Wauwatosa School Board on Monday unanimously approved the $525,000 construction bid from Ray Stadler Construction Co. It was the lowest bid received. School officials said they expect about $350,000 to come from the district's capital funds and the remainder from fundraising.

Several board members questioned the price tag and how much of the cost the district will be responsible for paying.

"Are we getting a gold standard bathroom?" board member Phil Kroner quipped.

The district bid the project twice, said Bruce Johnson, district buildings and grounds manager. Last July, the numbers came in $100,000 higher, so the architect was asked to do some redesigning and the state to back off some of its requirements. The new bid came to the district in February, but school officials waited to provide more time for fundraising before presenting the numbers to the board.

District Business Manager John Mack said about $135,000 has been raised at this point.

That puts the district about $40,000 short of the bid price, Kroner said. He does not want to see the district spend more than the $350,000 planned.

Johnson said parts of the project, such as ornamental fencing and some landscaping work, can be deferred until more fundraising is done, but he did not recommend that option. Rather, he hoped some more donations would come in quickly.

The capital budget has about $1.1 million in it, but more requests to tap into those dollars are expected. Johnson still plans to bring forward proposals to replace the chiller units at Wauwatosa East High School and improve stage lighting at Wauwatosa West.

Project a priority

Board member Michael Meier applauded district officials for finding dollars for projects that are deemed important despite difficult economic times.

The project was the top athletic field improvement priority, according to a report published in spring 2006 by an administrative committee.

Superintendent Phil Ertl said he would like to reconvene that committee, add some people who have joined the district since 2006 and set some new priorities. Turf improvements for Wauwatosa East High School count among the existing recommendations, but that need is getting taken care of on the city's dime via the construction under way on a new stadium at Hart Park.