A proposed $4 million transfer from its general fund balance to the capital reserve fund could help Palmerton Area School District pay for several upcoming projects and close out expenditures on its recent junior high school addition.

During a board workshop Tuesday night, directors said they would take up the proposal, outlined by business manager Ryan Kish, at its next meeting in two weeks.

According to Kish, Palmerton has an estimated $1.8 million in upcoming work at the high school, including improvements in the gymnasium, replacement of corridor security gates, window replacement and the completion of a painting and flooring project. Other work includes the addition of a canopy at the rear entrance to the Parkside Education Center, paving at S.S. Palmer and Towamensing elementary schools, and the installation of ADA-compliant door handles.

“We have about $1.5 million remaining in our capital reserve fund right now,” Kish said. “The transfer would take our general fund balance from $11.9 million down to $7.9 million and get it to about 24 percent of our current budget. It would also allow us to look at some things like a tennis court project, replacement of a storage tank at Towamensing, high school music room upgrades and additional security upgrades.”

Director Barry Scherer said Tuesday he’s in favor of the budget transfer, noting the importance of the upcoming projects.

“These items are not window dressing,” he said. “We have talked about them for a long time.”

Fellow board member Charles Gildner concurred, stating that the transfer would still leave the district with a fund balance above what Moody’s, a credit-rating company, recommends.

The district also heard from Tim Sisock, project manager with Barry Isett and Associates, on Tuesday. Sisock said the goal is to get the high school window replacement job out to bid by the end of this month, with a contract awarded in April.

“That project will match the windows installed in the junior high,” Sisock said. “There is a lot of lead time involved with that, however, so we want to move as quickly as we can.”

The painting and flooring in the high school is a culmination of a project that started with the south side classrooms and corridor on the second floor.

“We’ll do the rest of the high school this summer,” Sisock said. “The only areas not included are the main office, the library and the music room area because that is likely going to be renovated as part of another project.”