SHELBY – The fate of a new Pre-K through 8th grade building and a new football stadium in Shelby is in the hands of the voters.
The Shelby Board of Education unanimously approved a resolution on Monday putting the issue of the new facilities on the November ballot. The cost of the new building to taxpayers totals $16,470,000 with a millage rate of 3.9 mills.
At 3.9 mills, the annual cost to an individual who owns a home valued at $100,000 would be $136 per year. That equals less than $12 per month for most taxpayers, and in return approximately 1,200 students in the Shelby City Schools district would receive a new school building.
“We’re now giving these options to the community, which is the responsible thing to do,” said Superintendent Tim Tarvin on Monday night. “We can either renovate our three buildings, or we can build new.”
The proposed location of the new building would be north of the current middle school, but south of the baseball field. In addition, the academic wing of the current middle school will be razed, but the David A. Jones Little Theater, the Joe Yohn Gymnasium, the music rooms, the commons, the locker rooms and the kitchen area would be preserved for future use.
“I think it’s an incredibly creative design and plan,” said Board President Lorie White. “I’m excited to see how it goes.”
A new Pre-K through 8th grade building would combine the student populations of Dowds Elementary, Auburn Elementary and Shelby Middle School, which were built in the mid-1950s and 1960s. Current enrollment projections of the new building are just under 1,200 students; Shelby High School has just under 500 students.
Tarvin noted the design of the new school would be developed so that the primary, intermediate and middle school grades would be housed in separate academic wings and areas.
“A couple people have told me they don’t want their first grader in the same hallway as an eighth grader, and I can understand that,” he said. “It’s possible to design a building where these kids are not coming into contact with each other, and that will be a point of emphasis for us in the future.”
The opportunity for a new building came about when the district was notified by the state of Ohio that the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC) had $16,082,215 available to fund a new school facility in Shelby. This is 50 percent of the estimated $32,162,430 cost to build a new school. In order to receive the funds, the district must provide the other half of the project cost.
“I guess you could let the current buildings sit, but this community has never been about that,” Tarvin said. “It’s not our responsibility to stick our heads in the sand and pass it on to the next guy; we could put it off for another 10 years, but we might not get this opportunity again.”
If the community votes against building a new school building and decides to renovate instead, the OFCC estimated the minimum cost to refurbish Dowds, Auburn and Shelby Middle School would be $34 million. Renovation would have to take place in these buildings while school was in session, and the OFCC would not be eligible as a partner in funding if the district chose renovation, meaning the entire $34 million would fall on the district and the taxpayers.
“Do you spend those millions of dollars and still end up with 70-year-old buildings, or do you end up with a brand-new building for less money?” Tarvin said.
If Shelby votes to build a new facility, the cost of the issue on the ballot would be $16,470,000. That equals $16,082,174 as the other half of funding provided by OFCC plus an additional $387,786 used as locally funded initiatives on the Pre-K through 8th grade building.
In addition to the new school building, voters will also decide whether to construct a new football stadium, as the current stadium only has 4 to 8 years of safe use left. Currently, architects estimate a new athletic facility to cost $2.8 million that would be included in the total cost on the ballot issue.
The new turf football stadium would run north to south where the academic wing currently stands at Shelby Middle School. Placing the field in this location allows W.W. Skiles Field to be replicated as much as possible with spectator stands close to the field and space for a “dog pound” in the end zones.
Tarvin explained that the football stadium at this location would also lead to huge cost savings in construction.
“The cost saving comes into play because you wouldn’t have to construct new big concession stands, bathrooms or locker rooms,” Tarvin explained, noting the current middle school would be repurposed for these facilities.
“Because we’re going to put it close to the current middle school, we are close enough to use the utilities that currently run into the middle school to service our football stadium,” he added.
Tarvin noted that district officials considered separating the football stadium and the new school building on the ballot. However, combining the two allows for at least $1 million in cost savings for building the stadium.
“I also think we’re going to do ourselves a disservice by separating an athletic venue issue from an academic venue issue; then you’re going to pit people who want a school building against those who want an athletic facility,” Tarvin said. “By putting them together, we’re putting just as much emphasis on academics as we are athletics.”
The purpose of the new building, Tarvin said, would be giving Shelby students the opportunity for 21st century learning in new buildings that wouldn’t need rebuilt for another 60 years. The last time a significant school construction project was approved by Shelby voters was in 2010 for the new high school, which was completed in 2013.
Tarvin also recalled his father’s involvement in the 1950s when the district built four elementary schools and the football stadium at the same time.
“They put their mind to it that it was in the best interest of the community and the kids, and we’re asking the same thing,” Tarvin said. “We believe this plan of building a new school is in the best interest of our kids, and it would also help the community.
“A lot of times, myself included, we make up our minds quickly about something,” he continued. “That’s why I would ask people in this community to take a good look at all this information, and ask questions. We want people to be as informed as possible to make an informed decision.”
