Some last-minute objections did not stop a plan to resurface four tennis courts near Keokuk High School from moving forward.
The Keokuk School Board has accepted the nearly $94,000 bid from Munson, Inc. out of Glendale, WI to do the work. It was the lowest of the two bids received.
The quality of the new playing surface came up, though, prior to the bid being accepted.
Former KHS boys tennis coach Gary DeGala told the panel the new courts will play much slower than the courts for the other high schools in the area, putting the local athletes at a significant disadvantage.
He says a harder surface, similar to asphalt, would be much better than the current proposal, which is a softer surface.
It was also revealed during the discussion that Keokuk will not be able to host larger-scale matches because of the playing surfaces.
Superintendent Tim Hood says a lot of thought and discussion went into the decision to resurface the courts with the softer surface.
He says it came down to money, which is coming from the city, the school district and private donations.
Hood says installing a faster surface could cost at least twice as much money.
The city says it will pay 60% of the final bill after grant money and private donations are spent. The school district will cover 40%, per a 33-year-old agreement between the two parties.
