At the Whitehall-Coplay School Board committee meetings Feb. 14, Jim Hanna, with D’Huy Engineering, gave an update on the bidding process for the new elementary school.

The pre-bid meeting was Feb. 7, and the bids were planned to come in 2 p.m. March 1 at the district office.

Hanna and his associates are expected to meet March 4 to prepare recommendations. It will be voted on at a 4 p.m. special board meeting before committee meetings March 14.

A proposed draft lease agreement, contingent upon awarding the bids for the new elementary school, has been made and, if ready in time, was set to be presented at the Feb. 28 board meeting.

Chip Miers, managing director at commercial real estate firm Markward Group, Allentown, is contracted with WCSD to help locate off-campus office space to use after the district office is vacated to make room for the new school. Administration needs to move out of the district office in May.

The finance committee began with a report from independent auditors Jeff Dobeck and Chris Betley, from Lehigh Valley accounting firm Buckno Lisicky & Company. Dobeck and Betley spent the last few months reviewing the June 30, 2021, district audit using governmental auditing standards.

“In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly in all material respects,” Betley read from the report.

The report was to be presented for approval at the Feb. 28 board meeting.

During the operations/transportation meeting, a third-party agreement with Zephyr Pride Foundation and Scoreboard Media was discussed. Currently, there is a digital scoreboard at the football stadium and in Whitehall High School’s gym, but Whitehall-Coplay School District Superintendent Dr. Robert Steckel is hoping to add a digital scoreboard to the track and multipurpose stadium in the upcoming months.

“By agreeing to this three-party agreement with Scoreboard Media and the foundation, we can formalize our relationship with the foundation and enhance opportunities for more marketing revenue for both the foundation and the school district,” Steckel said.

According to Steckel, there would be a “tiered revenue share.” WCSD’s share of revenue would cover operating expenses, including maintenance, content development and controlling the boards.

Steckel was set to recommend the five-year agreement for approval, also at the Feb. 28 board meeting.

In other news, the use of a $25,000 Safe Schools grant for surveillance cameras was discussed. In the fall, a special committee looked at areas that needed additional camera coverage at WHS, Whitehall-Coplay Middle School and Zephyr Elementary School, and an estimate including parts, labor, installation and some necessary hardware is $53,000.

More quotes will be coming, as there are multiple cameras that need to be replaced. There will also be recommendations for new cameras based on a recent traffic study of the campus.

The next committee meetings will be 4 p.m. March 14, with the next regular school board meeting 7 p.m. March 28.