THE DURAND community gathered on the Durand Area Schools campus on Monday, Oct. 9 for the official unveiling of the new Railroader Activity Center (RAC). A ribbon-cutting was organized by the Greater Durand Area Chamber of Commerce, and the ceremony was attended by several local dignitaries, including 71st District State Rep Brian BeGole and members of the Durand City Council.
Athletes from Durand’s senior class were invited to cut the ribbon and Raegan Taylor was selected to operate the oversized scissors. In addition to being awesome, Raegan was selected for this honor because it was her parents, Nick and Heather Taylor, who led a group of Durand Youth Basketball parents that approached Superintendent Craig McCrumb in the spring of 2019 about building an additional indoor basketball court on campus. That discussion would eventually lead to a bond proposal, which the community approved by a two-vote margin in August of 2020.
The $28 million bond the community passed in 2020 includes funds for the RAC and a performing arts center, which is currently under construction, as well as the addition of three new classrooms and a STEM classroom to Robert Kerr Elementary, air conditioning for the schools and a host of other improvements to all four schools in the district. Also included in the budget are improvements to the district’s athletic facilities and the district’s administration and transportation buildings. More than 130 community residents were part of the bond committee that was tasked with selecting which improvements would be included in the bond proposal.
Construction started on the RAC in the spring of 2022, and the school system was granted a temporary occupancy permit in June of 2023, allowing district employees and athletes to begin moving in to the building. The facility opened to the public at the start of the school year.
(Independent Photo/Graham Sturgeon)
