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In a 3-2 vote last week the North Kitsap School Board decided to not fund construction of a press box at the Kingston High School football field. It was a somewhat tortured decision, as board members did acknowledge that the board had made a commitment to the Kingston community.
But in the end there was some recognition that the commitment was for a different version of the press box than the one the board ultimately had designed, for safety reasons. And it was for less money.
This in no way marks the end of varsity football games at Kingston High School. I couldn’t attend Thursday’s meeting, (Other news took precedence.) but based on the district’s recording, which doesn’t include the public comment period, of the board’s discussion of it someone in the meeting said Kingston should play its games at North Kitsap.
Kingston backers seem prepared to live with the less than ample seating and head cover at its home games. The students want to play there and watch the games there. Much of the community loves having games at home. What they have is preferable to them to what they would have at what is clearly the home of the North Kitsap Vikings. My hunch is if the board had been asked whether Kingston should play at North Kitsap the vote would have been 5-0 against it, or maybe 4-1.
“Kingston has a right to have its games played and its band play on its field, and have its soccer team and football team and basketball team and everybody else play at its school and at its own homecoming at its home as North Kitsap has,” said Bill Webb, school board member.
This was not a vote about home games, though. It was just a vote about spending money on a press box, and board members said many in the community recognize that. Sure, a large number want the press box, but there were was a not insignificant number from Kingston who lobbied the board to not spend the money.
Scott Henden, board member and electrician, was willing to donate labor to putting in the electricity. He voted for the press box. Ken Ames did too.
Dan Weedin and Tom Anderson voted “no.” And Bill Webb, who before the vote said he hadn’t decided, ultimately decided that the money “now” wasn’t a good expense.
Kingston boosters and the student body had raised about $30,000. The district had earlier committed to $30,000 and set it aside. The final price tag was just south of $85,000. At least $25,000 too much for now.
The booster club meets Thursday and what to do next is on the agenda.
