Six schools to get fences this year

BENTONVILLE — A School District official said he hopes to install fencing on the playgrounds at six elementary schools this summer to address student safety.

Paul Wallace, director of facilities, estimated the cost of the additional fencing at $64,000 based on a bid he received. He said he will seek other bids.

Janet Schwanhausser, the district’s finance director, said the added expenditure, not originally factored into this year’s budget, doesn’t worry her.

“We have a $157 million operating budget, so when you look at something that is $64,000 that makes us know our kids are going to be safe, it doesn’t bother me,” she said.

Wallace identified

Centerton Gamble, Elm Tree, R.E. Baker, Sugar Creek, Thomas Jefferson and Willowbrook elementary schools as the sites the district will look to add at least some fencing.

A first-grader at Fayetteville’s Vandergriff Elementary School went missing from the school’s playground March 7. The 6-year-old boy was found unresponsive in the pool of a nearby home. He died the next day.

Vandergriff’s playground didn’t have a fence around it. The district added a fence following the incident.

Bentonville, like other school districts, has re-examined its fencing situation in the wake of Fayetteville’s tragedy. Wallace said there are factors to consider before installing a fence, including how it would affect safety plans in the event teachers and students must flee the building.

“When the public doesn’t see a fence, they think automatically we’re not concerned about the students’ safety. That’s the furthest thing from the truth,” Wallace said.

The fencing Bentonville is considering is the chain-link type. Other kinds generally considered more aesthetically pleasing would increase the price “substantially,” he said.

The schools targeted for fencing have different fencing needs. Wallace said the biggest project would probably be at either Centerton Gamble or Sugar Creek elementary schools.

Matt Cook, Sugar Creek’s principal, declined to comment on the issue when contacted Friday.

It’s unlikely the jobs will be done any time soon. Most fencing companies are scheduling projects six to eight weeks out, Wallace said.

The Rogers School District reviewed needs at every playground last year and identified areas to consider for improvement, said Ashley Siwiec, district communications director. That review led the district to add fencing at Reagan Elementary School.

Rogers is requesting a 3.5-mill tax increase from voters on May 9. That additional money, if approved, would go toward construction of two elementary schools and other needs. One of those needs is improved safety and security, including fencing, Siwiec said.

“That was one of the important needs we identified to take to district voters,” she wrote in an email. “We hope a positive result on the millage vote will help us fund additional projects.”

Wallace said the biggest project would probably be at either Centerton Gamble or Sugar Creek elementary schools.