Apr 26, 2019
Bob Coupland - Reporter
bcoupland@tribtoday.com
GIRARD — The Girard Board of Education is hoping to break ground in 2020 for a planned performing arts center next to the Girard High School complex off Shannon Road.
The board met Thursday with architects from Axiom Architects LLC of Youngstown who are designing plans for the project that they would like to have in use for the 2020-21 school year.
Architects John Orsini and Kirk Kreuzwieser told the board what they have done and the ideas they have incorporated for a performing arts center.
Board President Mark Zuppo said Axiom has completed designs for an auditorium for school programs and graduations with the board to look over and provide input.
“We are in the very early design stage. They are giving us ideas on the scope of the project to get our feedback,” Zuppo said.
In the future, there will be a public meeting about the center.
Axiom is preparing a timeline for the planned 1,000-seat performing arts auditorium to be constructed on the west side of the high school. The board previously hired Axiom at $600,000 for the design and planning of the auditorium addition.
The school’s cafetorium, which has a stage, is limited on how many people can fit inside the room for school events. Graduations and other functions have been moved to the gymnasium.
School officials said there is not enough room at the Girard 7-12 school complex to house the entire student body at once in the cafetorium, which prompted them to consider building an auditorium. The cafetorium has a stage area, which is used for plays and musical performances.
Superintendent David Cappuzzello previously said there may be room for educational programs and classrooms as well as board offices at the new center. The offices now are located on the second floor of the city building.
In other matters, the board approved a contract with Field Turf to remove and replace the entire running track at the football stadium, which will take 30 to 60 days to complete.
Treasurer Mark Bello said the new track will last longer and be a reddish-color surface. The track will go from being a latex-style surface to a polyurethane surface. He said they hope to have all work done before the 2019-20 school year begins.
Bello said the entire project, including removal, putting down asphalt and other work will cost $380,000.
bcoupland@tribtoday.com
