FAIRMONT– On Tuesday the Fairmont Area School Board heard an update from Buildings and Ground Director, Tyler Garrison, who spoke about some of the larger projects the district has been engaged with over the summer.

He said they’re getting closer to completion on the spectator entrance to the gym at the high school but are waiting on railings yet.

“They’ll be doing a lot of signage yet on the front of the building. That may take a little bit longer… but all of the other signage should be up next week, hopefully,” Garrison said.

He said the tennis court project, which consists of filling cracks, saw some hiccups but that the cracks still got filled.

“It’s very playable and safe. As you know the cracks are getting larger.. so we are doing what we can to prolong the life as long as we can before we have to get a new base and everything in that area,” Garrison said.

The softball field house project also saw a number of delays, but Garrison said it’s finally moving forward and crews are slated to start digging this coming Monday. He noted the project should be a quick one.

As for indoor projects, Garrison said the high school office remodel project has been complete. For that the layout was changed to allow for a smoother flow and a service window was also added to the front side of the office. At the elementary school some flooring was replaced in a classroom.

“At the CTE building, we continue to have a punch list. I’ve been very frustrated with this part but we’ve had some contractors back this week… we’ve been promised before school starts… we’re hoping to wrap that up,” Garrison said.

In his report to the board, Superintendent Andy Traetow provided an update on the district’s new “Cardinal Prime” before and after school program. Registration for that opened on Aug. 14 and within two hours all 60 spots were filled. The number of spots available was based on the amount of staff members able and willing to help.

“We’re hoping to expand that as the school year is drawing closer. John Bartscher who is running that program has had additional community members reach out to him wondering about working those times. We have 40 people currently on the waiting list and we’re hoping to allow more people in once staffing is confirmed and expanded,” Traetow said.

He also shared that current registration numbers are at 1,770, which is up from where last school year ended, but slightly lower than the number reported t the last school board meeting. He said it’s common for the number to fluctuate ahead of the start of the school year.

“We’ve added more preschool enrollees so that’s been a good thing. We’re always glad to see those numbers strong,” Traetow said.

Finally Traetow also spoke about the work session that took place after the Aug. 8 school board meeting in which the board worked on the district’s strategic plan. He said the plan will be presented to staff on Monday, Aug. 28.

In other business at Tuesday’s meeting, the board:

— Accepted a donation of $2,310 for Fairmont weightlifting from Martin County Youth Foundation.

— Approved several revisions and/or additions to both the elementary and high school student handbooks.

–Approved a Memorandum of Understanding between the district and Education Minnesota Fairmont to add two coaching positions to the master agreement extracurricular salary schedule: United Cardinals head coach and Unified Cardinals assistant coach.

–Approved the activities admission fees for the 2023-24 school year, which saw no changes. Prices will remain at $7 for adults, $5 for senior citizens and free for students.

— Approved a food service agreement with Southern Plains Education Cooperative, St. John Vianney School and St. Paul Lutheran School. The two latter schools will have the addition of breakfast service in the coming year.