In a special meeting last night (3.26.1), the Lakeland School Board (LSB) approved a “construction manager at risk” contract with Chris Woods Construction for middle school athletic fields.
The construction company joins Renaissance Group, A2H and Southern Educational Strategies to plan and build athletic fields and related structures at LMPS (Lakeland Middle Preparatory School).
Dr. Ted Horrell, superintendent of the Lakeland School System (LSS), said the money to build the fields comes from the $3 million+ in excess funds left from bond proceeds on building the middle school. LMPS was completed in 2017 and opened to students in August 2017.
The plan, according to Dr. Horrell, is to build out as much of the fields as possible.
Priorities outlined by Dr. Horrell in this phase:
- Artificial turf football field with lights and adequate seating for middle school events
- Regular turf soccer field with lights and adequate seating for middle school events
- Adequate parking for these events
- A football/soccer field house with concessions and public restrooms that would be built to accommodate future high school teams
“Our goal is to have at least the football field ready for use by the school football team in time for their season in August, and the rest is more flexible. Because it is artificial turf, the football field could also be used for soccer and other activities, if desired. We anticipate having the field available for use by the City of Lakeland,” said Dr. Horrell.
In other LSB news, there will be no work session for April. The business meeting will be April 9 at City Hall.
