District pushing for $49M project

CASTALIA — Progress continues on Margaretta Schools' much-needed construction project. At a recent public meeting, Margaretta administrators provided updates on the project with officials from Fanning Howey Architects and Mosser Construction on hand to answer questions. School district officials hired Mosser Construction, of Fremont, to be the construction manager. Mosser is the same company involved in Sandusky Schools' facilities project. This week's presentation, along with past facilities presentations, is available on the school's website, margaretta.k12.oh.us, under the community resources tab. A video recording of the meeting is on the district's social networking page. Building design In provided artist renderings, Fanning Howey debuted what the future building, for preschool through 12th-grade students, could look like once completed. District employees were involved in the preliminary design process. "As we move forward with the design, we're going to get more and more input from employees," superintendent Ed Kurt said. The building, at the 93-acre Ohio 101 site near the bus garage, would take up more than 169,000 square feet. Right now, the proposed building would: • Feature two stories in the main building; the left wing of the building's first floor would house preschool through first-grade students with middle school classes in the right wing. The second floor would have classrooms for grades 2-5 and high school in separate wings. • Contain locker rooms, two gyms, music and FFA rooms behind the main academic portion of the building; A gym for high school would have seating for 1,500 people with an auxiliary gym for elementary and middle school students nearby. • Offer a large outdoor courtyard that could be used for outdoor dining, student activities and other possibilities The project is now moving into the design-development phase, through the end of August, where Fanning Howey, headquartered near Lima, will meet with all Margaretta staff to discuss more details. "We're also going to get very specific about plumbing, technology systems, electrical systems, etc.," architect Steve Wilczynski said. "There's a lot more work to be done, but we have a great start." With its aging school facilities, Margaretta officials started to gather input from the public for a possible construction project a few years ago. Recent assessments of buildings showed the middle school/high school facility isn't able to be effectively renovated due to its age. The worst portions were built in 1913, 1922 and 1953. A state assessment of Margaretta Elementary, however, showed the building's oldest additions, from 1959 and 1963, could either be renovated or a new elementary school could be built. Update on finances The project's total cost, including the construction of the new building and partial demolition/abatement of current elementary and middle/high schools, is about $49 million. The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, a state agency, will pay for 38% of the project. For the preschool-through-high school building, that equals about $15 million. That state funding percentage, however, is expected to go down once Margaretta Schools receives more money from the Nexus pipeline project, treasurer Diane Keegan said. When the school district does receive funding from the pipeline project, Margaretta officials said they want to allocate 25% to the district's general fund, 25% to cash reserves and 50% to facilities funding. Keegan explained why Margaretta Schools is moving forward with project plans when the funding isn't immediately available. She said the district didn't want to lose the state commission's 38% state payment of the project, the highest given to Margaretta Schools. "It was really important for us to lock this in and get it approved and get ourselves in line with the OFCC," she said. Since Margaretta's project was approved last July for state commission's funding, the district has to show progress with the project, like hiring a construction manager, designing the building, among other tasks. "All of our experts in this process believe that we have done enough significant work on the project in order to show that forward progress by July," Keegan said. "It's very important to keep that 38% locked in." COVID-19 hasn't helped the project, either. With more demand for school construction around Ohio, the $15 million in state money could come in about eight years. Additionally, the Nexus pipeline project, originally supposed to pay $29 million within the first five years to Margaretta Schools, might end up paying $16 million after its appeals to pay less. That money might not come for another two to three years. So Nexus doesn't get a tax break, Margaretta Schools wants voters to approve its five-year, 7.75-mill renewal levy for operating expenses on the May 4 ballot. "It is important to maintain our current taxing millage with the passing of this renewal, or it will have a reduction effect for the Nexus Pipeline Company's taxes owed to the Margaretta Local School District," Keegan said. "This reduction for Nexus would put more burden on the local taxpayers in the future." What options are left With the funding delays, Margaretta Schools has two options. The district must either: • Pause the project at the end of the construction documents phase by November or December this year; No construction or bidding action would happen until the outcome of the Nexus appeal • Put a 6-mill bond issue on the ballot without having to pause the project Out of those two options, Margaretta officials seek to pause the project's development later this year. "We will not move forward with a bond issue unless we heard overwhelmingly from the community to do it," Kurt said. "We don't want to do anything the community doesn't want to do — this is the community's project." Kurt reiterated that Margaretta's facilities issues need to be addressed. "At the same time, we want to be smart and make sure we feel good about the Nexus appeal," he said. "Once we go ahead with the project, we're going to put out a great product that our community is going to be proud of for decades." Reach reporter Caitlin Nearhood at nearhood@sanduskyregister.com and follow her on Twitter @CaitlinNearhood