The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG - The Waitsburg School Board has a big question to answer and it needs to be answered soon - what to do about the lights and power?

Colter Mohney, the district's facilities/transportation/ maintenance supervisor, and Board Chairman Ross Hamann, told the school board and the district personnel last week that the power for the lights on the district's football field is lacking to the point that it is a fire hazard.

Mohney said last fall, employees from Pacific Power and Light reported the wiring on the field's lights was running so hot that the intense heat melted the company's new digital meter.

He said he was aware that the lights needed more power because the lights sometimes got too hot and unexpectedly shut down to cool.

Mohney learned recently the light poles themselves are also in poor shape and could be hazardous in wind storms. He said they are bending under the weight of the lights and have cracks the width of a quarter running up and down the length of the poles.

The lack of power for the lights isn't the only problem. The Booster Club and the Lion's Club recently donated $25,000 in labor and funds to build a new press box for the field. Mohney said with the current electrical capacity, there would be no way to power that press box if it was built.

An electrician and Pacific Power & Light were brought out to inspect the situation and Mohney said the electrical system is running at about 385 amps, which could be dangerous.

"It is potentially a fire hazard," he said.

He added that he can actually hear the wires vibrate in the power box and said the district's insurance company said there needs to be more lights on that field or the district will need to go to daytime games.

Hamann said he has a bad feeling in his gut that the poles, which were installed in 1974, could break in some way and cause damage to property or people.

To completely fix the problem, it is going to cost the district up to $46,000, Mohney said. That amount would install full three-phase power that would provide the energy needed to power lights, the concession stand, the press box and any other field additions to come in the future such as a scoreboard or play clocks. That amount would also install new, brighter field lights. Mohney said Walla Walla University has offered to sell the district a set of light poles and lights it has had in storage for a lower price than new poles and lights.

"This would give us plenty of power, new lights, installation and we're up and running," Mohney said.

He added that he could do more of the work himself so the price could be as low as $42,000.

Superintendent Carol Clarke said if the district funded the new power sys- tem and the lights, the district would not be able to make any repairs to facilities or buses the rest of the school year if something broke.

"It would totally deplete the capital project fund," Clarke said.

Mohney said the district could opt to just install a single-phase electrical system to power the press box for $7,125, but that would not solve the overall problem. Or, another option is to only add adequate power for the press box and future needs for $15,795 without adding any new lighting.

The school board is working against the clock. Track season starts Feb. 27, and to do any of the electrical work Mohney will have to tear up the track he said. The main issue with doing the smaller project now and the larger one later, in Mohney's opinion, is that he would have to tear up the track every time work was done. He said he would rather tear it up once and get everything done in one fell swoop.

Board member Marilyn Johnson said she believes the $42,000 to $46,000 is a good price for the job and the district should move to complete the project. Other board members agreed that something has to be done, and fast, with the spring sports season coming soon.

The board decided to have a special meeting Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. in Preston Hall to make a decision on what to do about the electrical problems.