Board approves office, vehicle purchases
The Bryant School Board during a meeting Thursday voted to purchase an office building to be used for an administration office on Reynolds Road.
This building will house the district's central administration and business office staff, as well as, a space for the board to meet.
According to information included in the meeting agenda, the current administration office was built in the early 1970s and an addition was constructed in 1980.
The new building, which is the Big Red Stores office, is much larger than the current building and includes 2.94 acres of property.
The purchase price for the building and property is $1,885,000.
Bryant Superintendent Dr. Karen Walters noted that she felt that the sellers were being "very fair" and that the price for the building came from an appraisal that is more than five years old.
The Bryant School District is set to close on the building in August, but Big Red employees will continue using the building until their new offices are constructed. District employees are expected to take over the building in January of 2023.
During the transition, the Bryant School District officials will not charge Big Red rent, but instead, the district will make payments toward the purchase with no interest charged.
Board member Sandra Porter mentioned during the meeting that the current administration office is one of the worst in the state.
She told other board members that she has served on the board since 2006 and at that time the board was discussing the need for a new administration office.
The board also approved the purchase of five vehicles.
The Assistant Transportation Director is currently driving a 2003 Suburban with a number of miles on the vehicle, according to documents attached to the agenda. The director drives a significant number of mile checking routes and roads throughout the year.
The board voted to allow for the purchase of a used pick-up with a maximum price of $40,000.
The maintenance department also has several trucks that have “outlived their time” according to
the information presented to the board. The maximum purchase amount allowed for the used work trucks would be $100,000.
During the recognition portion of the meeting, members honored Rob Patrick for his continued coverage of Bryant athletics on Bryantdaily.com.
Staff at five elementary schools were also recognized for being named Capturing Kids' Hearts National Showcase Schools for the 2020-21 school year. Schools honored were
Davis Elementary, Salem Elementary, Hurricane Creek Elementary, Collegeville Elementary and Parkway Elementary.
Other approved items include:
•A landscaping proposal for the main campus. The district received a $54,000 bid from Herman Reeves Dirt Works, Inc.. The project would including landscaping of the parking lot islands around the main campus. The current island landscape with grass is labor intensive, Walters told the board. By replacing grass with rocks, the district will reduce the workload for maintenance staff.
•The purchase of sixth and seventh grade science textbooks from Mcgraw Hill.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Walters commended the district's faculty and staff for their hard work during the past year.
She also thanked that board for their support.
Information about personnel changes that were approved during Thursday's meeting will be included in an upcoming edition of The Saline Courier.