The State College School Board Monday night received high school project updates on everything from development to the budget.
Randy Brown, Business Administrator for the State College Area School District, gave an update on the financing options for the high school project. The cost of the project cost is estimated to be between $109 million and $115 million.
It’s expected that a referendum to pay for the renovations will ask voters to approve spending in a range from $60 million to $80 million.
Brown also says he is looking at a repayment schedule of between 20 and 30 years.
The main point of the presentation, though, was for Brown to show that one of these numbers changing may change another number.
“By changing different factors, other factors may change as well,” Brown says. “We’re trying to show flexibility.”
In total, Brown has about 25 different scenarios the board will be considering in their continued decision making process of the high school project.
“We’re looking at all these scenarios … to show what the district can afford,” State College Are School District Superintendent Bob O’Donnell says.
The board voted in September to approve major renovations to the south building. That way all core classes can all be held on the same side of the street. Portions of the north building will still be available for student and community use.
The board is now looking at differences between two proposed renovation plans for the high school. One redesign plan has a more westward expansion of the south building, while option two incorporates a more crescent shape.
John Beddia, director of operations at the architecture firm the school district is using for the high school project Crabtree, Rohrbaugh and Associates, says the westward expansion isn’t a very viable option. He says the crescent shape is the better choice.
Board members have said in the past that the crescent option is the more favored option.
The board also looked at a decision-making timeline put together by board President Penni Fishbaine and Vice-President Amber Concepcion. While the board has been looking frequently at a broad project calendar, Fishbaine and Concepcion proposed a timeline of key decisions the board has to make.
Those dates include Dec. 2, when the board has to make a final decision on what proposed renovation will go into effect and Feb. 10, when the tentative project budget will be determined.
Board member Jim Pawelczyk wanted however, to decide on a final referendum amount. The referendum must be passed in May to allow for the funding of the high school project.
“We need to establish a not to exceed amount and the sooner we do that the better,” Pawelczyk says. “I think we have enough information now. What’s lacking is the fact that we haven’t done it.”
Board member Laurel Zydney says she wants to at least set a cap so they can report to the community what the board is thinking on the referendum.
“I don’t have a problem with making a maximum,” Zydney says. “We haven’t been able to say to community ‘this is what were thinking — what do you think?’”
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