Ponca City residents will vote on a proposed bond project on Oct. 12, 2021. Every single school site in the Ponca City Public School district will see an improvement. This seven-year $49.7 million bond project, with an additional $10 million of CARES funds, will allow improvements to the school district and aid in the mitigation and spread of COVID-19.
Two of the projects included in the bond issue is the baseball complex located on the Po-Hi campus on Fifth Street and softball field at West Middle School.
Adam Leaming, Executive Director of Operations Intern, said, “The district has consistently improved our facilities at the softball and baseball fields over the years. Included in this bond proposal is a sizeable investment in our softball and baseball facilities to raise the level of our stadiums to a 6A level.”
The baseball field will have a new eye-catching appearance on Fifth Street. Plans are to create a new entry off Fifth Street and create ADA accessibility with an entire solid surface courtyard. From there you will pass the redesigned ticket booth and enter under the new roof decking to the lower level bleachers in the bowl.
New restrooms for the public will be added, along with ADA access to the stands and a new visiting dressing room.
“It’s been a goal of PCPS to increase the ADA accessibility of each of our facilities while enhancing the overall safety and use for spectators and guests,” said Leaming.
In addition, each stadium will see new bleacher enhancements, awning and general visual upgrades.
“Our goal with these upgrades is to provide accessible facilities that showcase our fantastic Wildcat softball and baseball athletes while simultaneously letting visitors know we take care of our students in Ponca City,” said Leaming. “These complexes will also give us the opportunity to host more events in Ponca City in the near future.”
Superintendent Shelley Arrott stated, “Ponca City Public Schools vowed to build and maintain state-of-the-art facilities for our students, staff, families, and community while keeping our school sinking fund mill levies even at 22 mills. Since the 1990s, we have been able to do so with the unwavering support from our community, with NO tax increases. The October 12, 2021, proposed bond project, coupled with leveraging our CARES funds to make necessary repairs to prevent, prepare, and respond to COVID-19 will allow for generational changes for our students and community. While maintaining the lowest sinking fund mill levies in our area and among our peer schools, our students and community are able to benefit from the experiences these outstanding facilities provide with NO tax increase. I am so excited about the possible future benefits for our Wildcats and for our wonderful community of Ponca City, and we cannot wait to share the details of all the projects. The baseball and softball projects are just two of the many proposed projects we will be sharing in the upcoming days.”
