However brief, the July meeting of the Columbia School Board touched on a range of topics including the final step for funding renovations at Columbia High School, service contracts for the upcoming school year and the possible addition of a cell tower on Columbia Middle School grounds.

A major financial action item on the agenda was a resolution of intent to issue no more than $33 million in funding bonds for the district.

This substantial bond decision had been discussed by the board at previous meetings and followed a similarly large debt certificate item that was approved back in June.

As Columbia Superintendent of Schools Chris Grode explained, the item – which was approved by the board – provides the final chunk of funding necessary to pay for the major renovations taking place at CHS.

“This is the last little bit that we will need,” Grode said. “We are on budget. Everything is good to go.”

The high school renovations also came up later in the meeting during facility study discussion, with Grode offering an update on the progress that’s been made.

He also spoke about work he’s done with recently-appointed Regional Superintendent of Schools Ryan McClellan in putting together a temporary occupancy permit in order to have the still in-progress office space and entrance prepared for the start of the school year.

“We did tour the facility prior to this board meeting,” Grode said. “They are moving along quickly and getting things done very nicely. However, we have four weeks before school starts, and we need temporary occupancy of the office area. The goal is to get the front of the building ready by that Aug. 11 date.”

Speaking more on the main entrance to the building, Grode also noted there is some uncertainty regarding whether or not the space will be ready for the first day of school as this phase of the project has been placed on a fairly tight schedule with 31 rain days in recent months.

He reiterated the good progress among the construction team and emphasized his own optimism but also noted the high school would simply continue to rely on the entrance near the cafeteria as it did last year should the need arise.

“School is going to start regardless,” Grode said. “Worst case scenario, we start exactly the way we ended last year and then move in as soon as we can.”

Concerning other action items on the agenda, the board approved some bids for the new school year, namely a chemicals for food service bid with Imperial Dada and a fuel bid with R&M.

The board also approved the safety hazard/school safety bussing area, a regular item Grode offered further insight on.

“This is where you all agree that Route 3, Veterans Parkway, Main Street, we don’t want to have little kids crossing those streets because it’s dangerous,” Grode said. “By saying that those roads are dangerous to have kids cross the street, anybody that lives within a mile radius, typically you’re not able to get reimbursed, but if we say that those roads are dangerous, then we can get reimbursed for those kids that live less than a mile away.”

Also approved was the hiring of ancillary staff as required for the upcoming school year and the first reading of board policies Press Plus Issue 119.

In his monthly report, Grode noted the CHS greenhouse which was damaged in a hail storm earlier this year should hopefully be fixed near the start of school as the district was finally able to push through issues regarding the bidding progress.

Grode further touched on the fact the new scoreboards had been installed, also noting plans to host something of an open house for potential advertisers to show off the boards’ capabilities.

He also made mention of plans to lease a part of the CMS property behind the school for a cell tower, having spoken with a company and coming to an agreement for $1,100 a month, increased by 7 percent after 10 years and another 7 percent every five years after that.

With Grode saying the tower would be scheduled for further discussion on next month’s meeting agenda, Columbia School Board President Greg Meyer also spoke on this matter later in the meeting.

“We have a prime location where the high school is and the middle school for this dead area, and we have some land,” Meyer said. “I think it’s a good community project. On the other side, it’s a revenue producer for the district.”

Meyer further discussed how the district had been reaching out to companies about this idea for some time given the poor cell reception in that part of town, though it had taken some negotiations on Grode’s part to get any lease talks to the current, acceptable amount of $1,100.

Some board members, namely Naureen Frierdich and Kelly Meuerer, spoke about possible pushback among community members given some health concerns surrounding 5G.

“That was my first red flag was, I mean, do I want my kids right next to that while they’re at school? Probably not,” Meurer said.

Concerns about the public health impacts of 5G signals have proliferated since their widespread adoption in recent years, though these concerns seem to be widely unsubstantiated.

The matter of the school calendar was also discussed by the board as certain changes such as having a full week for spring break had previously been floated.

Columbia School Board Vice President Lisa Schumacher raised the question about such changes, and Grode and Meyer responded noting how tight the calendar can already be and how difficult it is to keep the semesters balanced.

“Dr. Grode and I have had several conversations on this topic, and the problem is just the dates,” Meyer said. “We can’t squeeze everything in at once. I think our idea was pretty much prioritize nothing past Memorial Day first and then we can see if we can squeeze some more dates somewhere.”

Amid the calendar talk, it was also noted that focus would be placed on the district’s e-learning plan to keep lessons going even when school buildings are closed.

Columbia Assistant Superintendent Amanda Ganey’s report, along with touching on the induction of new teachers, also focused on important dates – chiefly open houses – for the district with the start of school.

These include Aug. 12 for Eagleview and Parkview, Aug. 13 for CMS, July 30 for CHS Freshman Academy, Aug. 12 for CHS Locker Night and Aug. 19 for CHS Open House.