What is the plan for new facilities?The Board of Education has approved a plan that will construct a new elementary school (grades pK-5) on the property of the existing middle school in Berlin Heights. The current high school in Milan will be renovated and a new middle school (grades 6-8) will be added to it.
How much will this plan cost?
The anticipated cost of the project is $87,335,000. The district has placed a 6.71mill bond issue on the May ballot. The length of the bond is 37 years. If approved, this would raise $46,715,000 of local money toward the overall cost. The remaining amount of the project would be paid for by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission and revenue the district receives from the Nexus Pipeline.
Why now?
Financial support from the OFCC is determined by a three-year adjusted per pupil valuation of the district. This relates largely to the property wealth of the district. Because of the new pipeline, the district’s valuation continues to increase. This means the amount of State support the district would receive for a construction project continues to decline. Beginning the project now would
“lock in” a state share of 27%.
What is the state of the school buildings?
Current buildings do not meet the same educational, safety and health standards as new schools. A decade ago, the elementary and middle school ranked 5th and 8th in Ohio for need of replacement under the Ohio School Facilities Commission’s Exceptional Needs Program. The Exceptional Needs Program is a building replacement program that provides school districts with the ability to protect the health and safety of their students with a new facility.
Renovate or Replace?
The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission recommends building new buildings if the cost to renovate old facilities exceeds 66% of the cost of building new ones. The percentages for Edison are based on assessments from a decade ago and, despite ongoing maintenance and expense, many issues remain.
Elementary = 86% Middle = 89% High = 78%
Because of the locally-supported additions to the high school (science labs and multipurpose room), the district has requested and received permission to keep the existing building for renovations.