School board asks Benson to consider funding walking track

As part of an extensive renovation and expansion project at Benson Public Schools, the board of education is proposing to construct a new gymnasium on the north side of the school.
That new gym will be needed as the district turns what was the old junior high auditorium into a facility dedicated to the arts. There would no longer be any sports played on the raised floor in the building.
Further, the district is looking at eliminating the indoor swimming pool and repurposing it to house the school’s gymnastics program. The room could also be used for indoor tennis, batting practice with cages for both softball and baseball, and golf practice.
The Monitor-News will publish a more detailed story on the full scope of the project that the school board is contemplating in next week’s newspaper.
Monday night Supt. Dennis Laumeyer met with the Benson City Council to see if it was interested in funding the addition of a walking track in the gymnasium. It is estimated it would add $620,000 to the $1.7 gymnasium project costs.