Seneca Valley administrators have sketched their vision of the district's facilities and grounds, outlining 50 potential projects with an estimated total cost of $100.3 million.
Potential projects include installing artificial turf on three playing fields at the secondary campus, a three-year renovation of the Intermediate High School and renovation or possible reconstruction of the 75-year-old Evans City Elementary and Middle School.
Whether the district goes forward with any project depends on results of a feasibility study and on school board approval.
“While each of the buildings lends itself to the district's current plan ... as we go along, every one of our buildings needs to be looked at in a feasibility study,” said Robert Cook, the district's director of buildings, grounds and security.
Cook presented the proposed 2015-18 plan to the school board on Monday, emphasizing that it is fluid.
“This plan doesn't look the same as six months ago, and it won't look the same six months from now, but it's a glimpse at the best-laid plans we can do as of today,” Cook said.
The proposed districtwide feasibility study will look at the long-term needs of buildings and facilities, Cook said. The last such study was performed in 2000 in conjunction with a demographic study, said district spokeswoman Linda Andreassi.
One factor that will affect the study's findings is Seneca Valley's enrollment, which is projected to grow as new housing developments are builtin the district, said Superintendent Tracy Vitale.
Three new housing developments in Cranberry — the Links of Cranberry, Ehrman Farms Phase 9 and the Glen at Woodside — will add a combined 131 single-family homes, 46 townhomes and 1,700 apartments to the district, Vitale said.
“We have no idea how many kids will go into those homes, but we know there will be kids,” Vitale said. “It's exciting to know Seneca Valley is growing, but it's important to think about planning so that we don't find ourselves in a position where our buildings are over capacity and overcrowded.”
For the summer of 2015, the district plans to replace the natural grass surface of the baseball, softball and soccer fields with artificial turf, which is estimated to cost about $3.8 million. Artificial turf has an age of about 12 to 13 years, said athletic director Heather Lewis. It costs less to maintain and allows more months of playing time than natural grass.
Athletes can play on artificial turf for about 10 months of the year, while natural grass allows about six months of play, Lewis said. In 2016, the artificial turf and running track at NexTier Stadium would be replaced.
The turf is 12 years old, and the track is 20 years old, Lewis said.
“Those two facilities have served the district very, very well, and we're very happy with how they've worked out for us,” Cook said.
Other plans include installing an electronic sign outside the entrance to the secondary campus in 2015 to increase communications with the community, putting air conditioning in Haine Elementary and Middle School in 2016, and a three-year renovation of the Intermediate High School from 2017-19.
Cook said the air conditioning is a necessity for Haine students during warmer months “due to the heat build-up in the second and third floors, and loss of attention from students.”
The Intermediate High School, built in 1964, has had additions but no renovations to the core building, Cook said. Renovations are planned to begin in summer 2017, starting in the southwest portion, which houses the pool, welding and wood shop and gymnasium.
The north side of the school, which houses the auditorium and cafeteria, would be renovated in 2018, and the classroom wing to the east would be renovated in 2019. The results of the feasibility study would point administrators to what work specifically will need to be done during renovations, Cook said.
Lynn Burtner, district business manager, said the district will have some refinancing opportunities in the spring that will play into how they pay for the projects.
Rachel Farkas is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-779-6902 or rfarkas@tribweb.com.
