Maintenance Vehicle Purchased for New High School Complex
The seven Armstrong School District board directors at last night’s regular meeting approved the purchase of a 2016 GMC Sierra 35 via Walker Motor Company in Kittanning.
by Jonathan Weaver
If snowfall ever comes this Winter, maintenance personnel at Armstrong Junior-Senior High School will be ready.
Last night, Armstrong School District board directors unanimously approved to purchase a 2016 GMC Sierra 35 stainless steel dump truck with plow and hopper spreader from Walker Motor Company in Kittanning.
The truck will cost $57,540 – paid for through Capital Reserve funding and bought via the state’s cooperative purchasing program.
School Directors Chris Choncek and James Rearic were absent from the vote.
Director of Facilities & Property Services Bill Henley said the dump truck was ordered in pieces. He plans on calling the Kittanning dealership today to order the truck bed.
“Our 2500 Silverado pick-up (trucks) only have a small salt bed on the back, and it’s very labor-intensive picking up 50-pound bags of salt and reaching up over your head and dumping them,” Henley said. “Being that we don’t know at this point what we’ll encounter when we do have a snow occurrence (at the new school), that is a lot of property to maintain.”
Henley said it is also a good financial decision. He ordered four tractor trailer loads of salt so far - with 49 pallets of 50 bags each - earlier this year.
“25-ton of bagged salt costs us over $6,000. 25-ton of bulk salt is only $2,300,” Henley said. “It’s going to save us a considerable amount of money in the long run by buying bulk salt.”
Maintenance officials are currently utilizing trucks that serviced Kittanning and Ford City secondary schools last school year before the buildings closed in June. Henley said he planned to continue to use the trucks until they are possibly auctioned off or traded in for a newer model.
The windy Buffington Drive will be maintained by Manor Township crews, but Armstrong will be available to help if needed.
“If Manor Township doesn’t stay on it, you have buses on there – you know who is going to get the calls,” Henley said. “We had to be prepared (that) if we have to send a truck out there to help Manor Township we will.”
Icy sidewalks will be combated with calcium chloride. Officials have a side-by-side utility vehicle with spreader for that operation.
“I think everything will work out – we’ll be prepared,” Henley concluded.
The district might also consider purchasing larger hoppers to fit on other school campus trucks in the future. Last week, Business Manager Sam Kirk said school officials hope to build a metal shed for salt storage.
School Board President Joseph Close understood why the truck was a better option.
“Since we’re consolidated on one bigger campus, the bulk salt didn’t make as much sense,” Close said. “Now, we can load the truck one time for several salting and plowings.”
The truck was purchased through Walker Motor Company because he is a COSTAR dealer.
Armstrong School District | jweaver December 15, 2015
By ktown_kid, December 15, 2015 @ 11:18 PM
WAY TO GO ASD!!! KEEP ON SPENDING!!