By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
The Board of Education, its president Ryan Myers asserted at Tuesday’s meeting, is not campaigning to pass the $72.8 million bond levy to build a new high school.
“We as a board would never presume tell someone how to vote , “ he said in his opening remarks. “We do want people to be informed with accurate information that’s readily available.”
Social media, though, is not the place to turn.
There are a few posters repeatedly put out misinformation, he said. Too much to address in his brief remarks.
But between Myers and Superintendent Ted Haselman, much of the meeting was devoted to promulgating information about the levy that voters will decide between now and Election Day, Nov. 7.
“We’ve been open and honest about the state of our facilities,” Myers said. “We have posted to our website all details along the way. … This has been an extremely transparent process.”
Myers addressed two “misconceptions.”
One, that the actual construction would cost $62.3 million with $10 million for “extras.” Not the case, he said. The amount above the $62.3 million is more like $6 million to convert existing space into a new activity center, with music rehearsal rooms and gyms. This would preserve 54,000 square feet.
Then there’s the issue of air conditioning. Why was the district ripping out the $3.2 million in air conditioning that was recently installed?
That information again, Myers said, is slanted. The work, more 80 percent of which was paid with federal dollars, was in the high school, Kenwood, and Conneaut.
Providing both the cooling and air filtration was a good investment. Only those parts in the sections of the high school being razed will be affected, and even in that case the air conditioning will still be used for three years while the new school is being built.
Later Haselman answered questions posed to the district about the project since his last presentation two weeks ago.
Haselman said that school financing is a complex topic that cannot be fully addressed in five minutes.
The superintendent explained that the levy asks for a specific dollar amount, $72.8 million, regardless of increases in valuation that’s the amount it will collect. If property values go up, the milage on the levy goes down to account for that.
He also addressed the cost to those who own agricultural land.
He cited three properties, providing parcel numbers, over varying valuations, the cost per acre of the project ranged from $3.46 to $3.71, or $148.43 to S266.98 per year.
Haselman went through an extensive list of safety features that will be included in the new school as well as improvements to academic facilities.
The new school will undergo a complete safety audit before it is occupied, Haselman said.
“The proposed new high school would offer many items to improve academic opportunities not available in the current high school,” he said.
That includes properly sized and equipped classrooms and science facilities with all the necessary lab services and safety equipment.
He concluded: “The job of a PK-12 school district is to provide opportunities and experiences for our students allowing them to be successful now and their future.”
Click to view Haselman’s presentation.
After the board moved through its regular business including approving contracts to provide special education services and accepting about $15,000 worth of gifts, the board opened the floor up for comments.
Three residents rose to express their full support for the bond levy.
And Richard Chamberlain posed more questions. How big would the classrooms be? And what is the life expectancy of the proposed high school?
