School District 162 opens Annex in Richton Park
From left, University Park mayor Joseph Roudez III, Park Forest mayor Joseph A. Woods, Matteson School District 162 and Southland College Prep Board President
Ron Bean, Matteson School District 162 Superintendent Dr. Blondean Y. Davis, Richton Park mayor Rick Reinbold and Matteson mayor Sheila Chalmers-Currin cut the ribbon for District 162’s new multi-purpose building. PHOTO PROVIDED BY MATTESON SCHOOL DISTRICT 162.
A former roller-skating rink is getting a second life for use as a multipurpose structure for School District 162. The 23,000 square foot Annex is located at 4645 Sauk Trail in Richton Park. The Matteson School District consists of seven elementary schools and the Southland College Prep Charter High School.
Dr. Blondean Y. Davis, superintendent of Matteson District 162 and CEO of Southland College Prep Charter High School, said that for more than 20 years the school district did not have a cooking kitchen. The district was using a vendor that provided frozen meals, but they went out of business.
“It’s always been our dream, as a school district, and my dream, as an educator, to provide fresh cooked, quality meals for our children,” she said.
Davis recalled her time at Chicago Vocational High School, which is part of Chicago Public Schools, and the fresh cooked meals they provided their students on a daily basis.
The roller-skating rink had been closed for more than five years. It was an eye sore. When it went up for sale, the school district decided to buy it and build a commercial kitchen on the site. The commercial kitchen would be able to cook meals for the 3,000 students in the district, and deliver those meals to the schools.
The Annex is a state of the art facility, the kitchen is more than 5,000 square feet. Davis called it a dream come true. Students are now looking forward to lunch. The students also get to provide input about the meals they are served.
To prepare the site for use for the school district, the entire building was gutted, and a new roof was put on it. It took a year to complete the renovation process, which cost less than $9 million.
The Matteson School District 162 also is in talks with other school districts to provide meals. While the commercial kitchen prepares 3,000 meals for the school district, it can prepare 20,000 meals. The goal is to provide quality meals at a competitive price.
Davis said it is a win-win because providing meals to other partners at a competitive price offsets the cost of the Annex, which means they don’t have to raise taxes to pay for the facility.
Craig Englert, CFO of Matteson School District 162, said a lot of districts were in need of a cooking kitchen. Right now seven districts are doing a joint request for proposals for a professional company to come in and make the meals from scratch, tailoring the meals to the districts and deliver those meals to those districts. The goal is to have that happen next year.
“They will assist in sharing the cost of the facility. That’s how we’re able to do it without raising taxes or needing any additional money from the tax payers,” Englert said.
Already, the school district is using the facility as a storage space, along with the commercial kitchen. The school district will use part of the facility to house records from the district, which is more than 100 years old. Luncheons also will take place at the Annex now.
Davis said the Annex has already exceeded her expectations. She believes the Annex will be an asset to the district and the community for years to come. She thinks of the addition of the Annex to the school district as part of the district’s evolution.
“I believe it will be a source of income, but also a source of pride,” Davis said.
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