The Hobart School Board accepted an amended donation from the city on Aug. 6 that adds $500,000 to a previous June gift of $4.61 million to expand the scope of work on Hobart High baseball and softball fields.
The original donation covered the installation of synthetic turf at both fields, and upgrades to fencing and lighting.
The $500,000 add-on approved Aug. 5 by the city’s Board of Works brought the total donation to $5.1 million from the Community Impact Fund, financed by money the city received from a data center under construction on 61st Avenue.
The accepted bid alternates include the relocation of the existing varsity scoreboards to the junior varsity fields and the installation of new scoreboards at $202,891.
The second alternate, at $9,050, replaces and repairs existing electrical outlets at the baseball field batting cage and adds a new outlet along the right field line.
The third alternate, at $106,368, adds a low masonry wall and backstop netting at both softball and baseball fields.
The fourth alternate bid, at $34,330, widens the existing sidewalk and provides a new ramp from the parking lot and a 12-foot gate in the fencing to allow emergency access to the baseball field.
The final alternate, at $134,129, provides new concrete between the junior varsity and varsity fields at both softball and baseball complexes.
Superintendent Peggy Buffington praised the donation, especially the synthetic turf additions. “It’s hard to play sports in Northwest Indiana in the wet springs we have,” she said.
The original bids came in about $200,000 higher than anticipated so Buffington said the district didn’t include any alternates. “This is so generous of the city,” she added. “These are things we could not do because we can’t afford it,” she said.
“It’s a blessing for our kids,” said board president Rikki Guthrie.
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The school district, like others in the state, is losing property tax revenue because of a new state property tax reform law, so it’s struggling to pay increased utility and transportation costs.
While the data center is within the city boundaries, it’s not in the school district boundaries so the district won’t receive tax revenue from it.
Buffington said work is already underway at the sports fields and it needs to be completed by Nov. 1 to be ready for spring play.
In other business, the board approved accepting an invitation to join the Porter Trust, changing its healthcare insurance from Anthem to United Healthcare.
Buffington said the larger network will provide lower premium costs for employees with a choice of four different plans.
“Our intent is to lower our premium costs. It’s more money in employees’ pockets and lower bills for the district,” she said.
Earlier, the Hobart Classroom Teachers Association approved the change.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.