Katy ISD swears in new officers, addresses bond management and campus maintenance at Feb. 22 meeting

By R. Hans Miller | News Editor
Posted 2/24/21

Katy ISD swore in two new KISD Police Department officers, examined budget issues and took action to manage the district’s bond debt in multiple ways at its Feb. 22 meeting. The board also …

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Katy ISD swears in new officers, addresses bond management and campus maintenance at Feb. 22 meeting

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Katy ISD swore in two new KISD Police Department officers, examined budget issues and took action to manage the district’s bond debt in multiple ways at its Feb. 22 meeting. The board also approved attendance waivers for students who would not be taking STAAR tests this year due to exemptions granted to some students by the state of Texas.

More details regarding exemptions to STAAR testing will be sent to parents and posted to the district website soon, a district representative said.

The board authorized the issuance of $40 million in bonds authorized by voters in 2017 at the advice of KISD Chief Financial Officer Christopher Smith. Smith said this would be the fourth and final issuance of bonds authorized by voters in the 2017 election. The board also authorized district staff to defease – or cancel out by early repayment – some of the district’s outstanding bond debt.

At the recommendation of Maintenance and Operations Director Mark Tiedt, the district authorized the replacement of aging bleachers at Beck Junior, MacDonald and McMeans junior high schools as well as Cinco Ranch and Taylor High Schools. The contract was awarded to Key Enterprises with a maximum contract amount of just more than $786,000 with contingencies included. Tiedt said the bleachers being replaced were costing about $60,000 a year to operate safely and were not ADA-compliant, as the new bleachers would be. Installation is tentatively expected to be complete in August of this year.

Tiedt also requested and received approval for portable classrooms to be installed at Bryant, Leonard and McElwain elementary schools as well as Adams Junior High School and Paetow High School with a not to exceed cost of $1.97 million. Cost includes installation of the buildings and connection of the buildings – of which there are 18 – to campus infrastructure. Brown and Root will complete the work.

Replacement of the chiller for Katy Elementary School was also approved at a cost of about $292,000. Tiedt said the current chiller, which had met its expected service life, was not working properly and was causing additional costs and inconveniences to the district. Funding for the new chiller will be provided by savings from 2017 bond projects, he said.

Katy ISD