Carbondale votes to fill in pool, refuses vote on Fell Charter renewal
Feb. 21—CARBONDALE — The pool at Carbondale Area Junior-Senior High School will never have a swimmer again.
Drained for at least a decade and without student interest for a swim team, the school board on Monday night awarded a contract to Nick's Excavating to fill the pool, at a cost of $143,300.
The space will be used for storage, and in the future could be used for a weight room or office space, officials said.
The funding will come from the $500,000 Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant the district received several years ago. The grant — for which the district must provide matching funds — also will include a new roof for the elementary school. The board awarded the $661,983 contract to Budget Roofing of Shamokin.
It took the district several years to use the grant because the district had to get its own finances in order to have the matching funds, board President Gary Smedley said.
Also on Monday, a resolution to renew the charter for Fell Charter School failed when it did not get a motion or a second. District leaders fought the creation of the school 20 years ago and have often lamented the funding that leaves the district for the charter school.
Business Manager David Cerra said the district has never granted Fell a renewal, and instead has let the state's Charter School Appeal Board make the decision.
The five-year renewal would have been from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2027. On June 29, 2022, the school board voted unanimously to deny Fell's fourth charter renewal application.
A decision from the appeal board in December found in favor of Fell and ordered that the executed renewal charter be presented to the school district for a signature.
The board also reappointed the Nutrition Group as the food service provider for the 2023-24 school year. The company guarantees a $109,592 profit.
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