Weathersfield moves forward with plans for $25.4M building project


By Mary Smith

news@vindy.com

MINERAL RIDGE

The Weathersfield school board approved two more resolutions to move forward on plans for a $25.4 million building project.

Ohio School Facilities Commission grant-supported work includes plans to renovate the high school and add on to it and Seaborn Elementary School demolition and addition, and razing most of the middle school.

The board approved a resolution Wednesday authorizing execution of an agreement with the OSFC for the project.

A second resolution approved issuing and selling bonds for more than $9 million for the local portion of the project for 30 years.

District voters in March approved a 6.9-mill bond issue to generate $551,235 a year for the $9.6 million total and an additional 1-mill bond issue to include a half-mill for permanent improvements and a half-mill for maintenance of the projects, for a total of $79,954 annually for 30 years.

The state portion of the project is $17,899,137.

The project will include:

Seaborn Elementary, at $12,480,571, to change the building from a K-4 building to a K-6 building by renovating and demolishing 46 percent of the building;

Mineral Ridge High School, $11,932,846, now to be a grades 7-12 building, plus $1.5 million extra to be used to build a new gym for the junior high at the school (from funds from the bond issue under what is called a locally funded initiative), adding nine new classrooms for the seventh and eighth grades at the southwest corner of the building for a new wing and renovation of the entire remainder of the building’s other two wings to include new windows, new lighting, and heating and cooling.

Middle school, to be demolished and abated at a cost of $1.038 million; the bus garage will be kept.