HORACE LANGFORD JR. / PVT Progress continues on the new Ron and Charlotte Floyd Elementary School. Nearly $300,000 of a variety of supplies has been approved by the school board. Advertisement

Capital improvements for several Nye County schools are slated to begin with the school board's approval of bids for the Thursday, April 3, meeting.

The projects will be funded using bond money.

In the north, one of the projects is to re-sod the Beatty High School football field.

Bob Whimpey, director of maintenance operations, explained the full scope of the project includes taking the topsoil down four inches, clearing weeds and debris, and then putting the new sod on top.

The bid was awarded to D and H Mining Co. of Beatty for $69,993.50.

Dropping students off for practice on the newly spiffed-up field will also be a bit nicer with the board's acceptance of a bid submitted by American Asphalt and Grading to repair, resurface, and stripe the high school parking lot for $12,298.

Whimpey explained that despite his attempts to regularly maintain school parking lots, he was having difficulty finding a contractor willing to go into Beatty. The parking lot is already cracked and the maintenance director explained that the repairs were increasingly necessary.

Meanwhile, Beatty Elementary School students will be a little safer when they play in the gym thanks to Croft-Beck Floor installing a rubberized floor in the gym for $30,191.

"It's good to see some of the bond money go up north, where it's desperately needed," School Board President Dennis Keating said.

Several bids were approved for projects here in the southern half of the sprawling district as well.

Recess is bound to be extra fun for students at J.G. Johnson Elementary now that the board accepted a bid for two new sets of playground equipment including a safety surface, which Whimpey explained accounted for about half of the cost.

The larger set will be able to entertain about 65 to 70 students, and the smaller set will accommodate about 40 to 50 youths.

The project will be completed by Great Western Park and Playground for $122,474.03.

Mt. Charleston Elementary students can also look forward to playing on new playground equipment including four new slides, also buttressed with a safety surface.

That project will be completed by Jaylee Development for $98,091.22.

The new Ron and Charlotte Floyd Elementary School, slated to open its doors in time for the next school year, will be well-equipped to host its students with the board's approval of bids for the school's furniture and supplies.

School Specialties will provide the school with office, classroom, music, and physical education furniture for $283,103.15 to be funded from the Floyd bond money.

The school's kitchen equipment and utensils will be provided by Boxer Northwest for $6,828.95.