School board OKs funds for new power supply system

Funding to replace Bigfork School District's backup power infrastructure was approved by the school board Jan. 14.

At a price tag of $31,815, the district will replace its uninterruptible power supply system that keeps servers going during power outages. The system provides roughly two to four hours of runtime for the network and communication systems.

In explaining the importance of the backup power supply, Bigfork Superintendent Tom Stack recounted the severe windstorm in December that knocked out power across Northwest Montana.

"We were going to send out an email at 9 a.m., and then five minutes to 9 the sheriff said to keep everybody off the roads," Stack said. "So then we were trying to get a hold of parents and send emails out ... to let parents know what's going on." 

He said not having a way to communicate with parents during an outage, "It's just not OK."

He said that campuswide there are about a dozen power supply units that should be replaced, having exceeded their five-year lifespan.

The money to pay for the upgrades will come from the district's technology fund.

"When the tech fund was established ... that was for these kinds of things," Stack said.

Later in the meeting, Stack reviewed a few "big ticket" maintenance projects on the horizon.

Namely, extending and retracting the student section of the bleachers in the high school gym has become problematic. 

"We've had continual problems with them," he said.

The student section was not replaced when the gym seating was last updated.

Stack said the board would need to approve funding for the project in February in order to have a good shot at getting on the work schedule this summer.

He also mentioned a need to address playground equipment, install LED lighting and replace flooring as maintenance items.