Palmerton Area School District’s board of directors discussed two upcoming projects at its workshop last week, including a resurfacing of the high school tennis courts and replacement of two outdated elevators in S.S. Palmer Elementary and the junior high school.

Facilities Director Joe Faenza said a meeting with Keystone Consulting Engineers, Palmerton’s engineer of record, yielded a proposal to mill existing cracks at the courts and put in a new wearing base.

“There are a lot of cracks there now and those would be milled, a new base would be put down where the milling was done to bring it back up to the current height and then the contractor would put an inch-and-a-half wearing base over the whole surface,” Faenza said. “It really is going to look brand-new when all is said and done.”

It was good news for the district when KCE determined the sub-base for the courts was able to remain. Faenza said a total restoration, including digging up the sub-base, would have probably cost around a $500,000.

Instead, Palmerton is estimating around $200,000 for the proposed work, which includes engineering design and bid package preparation.

Faenza said the district would be dropping down from five total courts to four to comply with Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association regulations that call for 12 feet between the fence and the first court, and 12 feet between each court.

“The fencing that is there around the courts now would stay,” Faenza said, “and we would be adding a concrete sidewalk from where the field house ends to get to the entrance of the tennis courts so you are not walking through all that mud.”

If KCE can start preparing bid specifications in March with a potential bid awarded in May, Faenza said, the work would be on track to get done this summer.

“I’m really excited,” Palmerton tennis coach Jennifer Danzeisen said regarding the project. “This is something we’ve really needed and we can’t wait for everything to get started.”

Elevator project

Palmerton is also looking to replace two of its three elevators across the district, one at S.S. Palmer and another in the junior high school.

“The main controllers, called Dover Microprocessor Controls, that operate the two elevators will be obsolete within two years,” Faenza said. There won’t be any parts available to fix them if they break down.”

The district estimates replacing the two elevators will cost about $128,000.

“This is something that will likely come out of the capital reserve fund, but when you look at the implications in terms of handicap accessibility, this is really a no-brainer in the sense that it needs to be taken care of,” Dr. Al Lonoconus, interim business manager, said.

Parts for the new elevator, Faenza said, will take about 5-7 weeks to arrive from the time of order.

“We’re hoping to issue a purchase order within a month and they would be able to do the work over the summer,” he added.