Water well, other projects move forward at South Callaway School District

MOKANE, Mo. - A water well that serves the South Callaway School District failed about two weeks ago.

"This was something we needed to get fixed quickly," Superintendent Kevin Hillman said.

The school board gathered Wednesday to talk about the problem. The 16-year-old water well at South Callaway High School failed after its pipe stopped functioning, they learned. The average lifespan of a well is 12 years, Hillman said.

To fix the problem, the pipe was replaced. During that time, the high school remained open, and employees still came to work. The high school employees temporarily had to use a different building when they needed water while the project was underway.

School board members also learned about problems with school bus cameras, some of which were not recording or saving recordings properly, Hillman said. He added there was no concern to the passengers or the bus drivers, but he said it was an issue that needed to be resolved.

"We just can't afford to not have the camera system," Hillman said, adding that the school district relies on the bus cameras for safety.

The cameras the school district uses on the buses typically have a five- to seven-year cycle before problems with the camera's hardware can spark, the superintendent added. All of the buses the school district will use for the upcoming school year will have functioning cameras, the superintendent said.

School board members also discussed several small projects to begin as soon as possible and end by Aug. 31. The projects include additions to a fence, implementing a drainage system and the painting and sanding of the fuel tanks.

"These are pretty minor projects," Hillman said.

The fence project will be positioned near the entrance areas of the sports complex, which in turn will help with the ticket booth collection, he added. The fence will have no impact on emergency situations as an ambulance will still have access to the field itself when needed. The motion passed with 4-2 and was awarded to Fence Pro.

Water has been an issue at the sports complex, the superintendent said.

"That is a swamp any time it's wet," Hillman said.

As a result, a drainage system will be added at the sports complex to allow water to escape.

The motion passed 4-2 and was awarded to S&A Equipment.

Fuel tank painting and sanding of the tanks at the transportation department was highlighted, too. The motion passed 5-0 with one abstention. The project was awarded to Doug Edler Construction.

The school board decided to accept the milk bid from Kohl for the upcoming school year.