Board discusses building projects
SCOTTDALE - At its meeting Thursday night, the Southmoreland School Board was divided and unsure of whether to build or renovate, and when to do it.
Kay Thompson, of Eckles Architecture out of New Castle, the same company that did the renovations on the high school, went over various options with the board as well as the timeline, cost and feasibility of each.
The consensus was that the junior high school was inadequate in many ways.
The proposed options were numerous.
A new school, which is being called a middle school, could be constructed. It could be made to house grades fifth through eighth or sixth through eighth.
If a new middle school were to be built, land acquisition would probably be required. Several areas of land the school district already owns were discussed as possible sites for a new school, but Thompson said that, while those areas might be sufficient for building construction, such things as parking lots and playgrounds that should accompany a new building would be a tight fit.
He said that a good area estimate for a new school would be 20 acres plus one additional acre for every 100 students attending the school.
The cost to the district of a new building for grades fifth through eighth was estimated at $18 million and the cost of a building for sixth through eighth was just under $15 million. The cost of renovating and adding on to the current junior high to accommodate fifth through eighth grades came in at $17.1 million, but to hold just grades sixth through eight, the cost estimate was $14.3 million.
Another plan discussed involved adding on to Scottdale Elementary School and using it to hold grades fifth through eighth while building a new elementary school that would house kindergarten through fourth grades. The combined estimated cost of this project is around $28 million.
If the board decides to go with additions and reno-vations to the junior high, the addition will be built first, and students will be moved into the new section while renovations are conducted.
The timeline given by Thompson required a plan to be decided upon by sometime this fall.
If planning for the new school began by the middle of October, construction could be finished as early as August of 2004. That assumes construction begins in March of 2003.
If the addition/renovation plan for the junior high were decided upon, and schematic planning began in January 2002, the addition could be occupied by August of 2004 and the renovations could be finished within a year after that.
Superintendent John Kenney said that a major renovation project like the ones discussed is imminent, even if it is put off for a few years. He said a more selective program of repairs could be done this year and the major work put off, but eventually the work would have to be re-done again either in the same school or a new one, thus making the selective repairs less cost-effective than they would be otherwise.
Board members Levi Miller and Rhonda Hamrock voiced concerns over the public response a new middle school would receive.
Hamrock said that some taxpayers wonder why a new school must be built when class sizes have already almost been halved in the past 20 years.
Kenney said that people must be made aware of the fact that as class sizes have decreased, the quality of education in the district has improved
Board member Alvin Stoker said he's been questioned by community members as to why this type of construction is necessary. He pointed out that the current junior high is filled to capacity and an influx of around 200 students is expected in the next several years.
Kenney said that there are teaching stations in areas not designated as classrooms.
Some of the area that used to be regular classrooms is now used for computer labs and additional special education rooms.
Several board members, including William Mayers, thought that land to build a new middle school on is available now but might not be for long.
The district can acquire land for construction rather cheaply, since it is reimbursed 70 cents on the dollar for any such purchases.
Also Thursday, the board accepted the letters of retirement of Paul Barclay, junior high math teacher; John Arzbacher, junior high science teacher and L. Wesley Boots, junior high social studies teacher.
