The savings for the construction company being passed to the district makes sense to me.  Sure the construction company would incur the cost of a temporary office but they are in this to make money and the lower their cost the lower the cost to the district and to the taxpayer provided George does a good job of negotiating the contract.

Now, let's just see if this bond passes. Sounds a little like chickens have been counted before the hatchings...

Vet, we know why we bought the property. It adds 1.3 acres to the high school site where we want to add a middle school. What Long said is we don't know exactly how that 1.3 acres will be utilized until the experts do their planning and site drawings. But we are completely sure that a larger overall property will give us more options, and that the corner of the high school property where this house sits is particularly cramped.

 

The community has been very vocal in indicating that they prefer the middle school to be on the same site with the high school. This extra acreage gives more flexibility in placing the middle school on the site while allowing for sufficient driveways in and out of the property. Frankly, right now the traffic flow at the high school is very awkward and cramped, due in large part to how this property abuts into the site.  This additional land will be a substantial benefit to the high school even if the bond levy fails and the district is never able to build a middle school on the high school site.

 

Processor, the thought is to use the house as temporary construction office for the first phases of construction, ultimately tearing it down and moving the driveway to the new edge of the larger site.

1.3 acres is a good score for the system---and no one else would want to live there next to the school, especially during the construction phase. Hopefully the system is LEASING it to the construction outfit. Headquartering there is a great idea--security there also. Makes it possible for someone to live there throughout, over-seeing the project. Eventually it comes down to enhance the entrance/exit from Manchester Road

 

price is what it is--most valuable to the system

 

jmo

 

And yet....it continues. No wonder so many houses are hitting the market before this tax and the city's 2.0% comes.

 

Rather than cram all this construction into a fairly small amount of land, the district should offer to buy up some of the Wild Wood Country Club across the street.  From what I hear they are hurting. 

 

Then again--I guess that it would go cheaper once the dirty work starts--or just wait until it goes into foreclosure

 

In general I agree that brick and mortar don't bring students in, but I also know that many people are very turned off by the location and appearance of the middle school and, if they currently live in Middletown look to send their kids elsewhere, or if they are looking to move to Middletown have strong reservations about buying.  I think that combining the middle and high school buildings on the same campus in the high school's current location will remove this as an issue and is one of the pre-conditions for getting people to stay in the district and to have a chance to bring outsiders to Middletown. 

 

It is completely understandable to me why the district would want the property, that it is a good fit with the current master plan, and that it serves the long term interest of the district to own it.

If money grew on trees I would buy my old neighbor's house on the same premise. 

don't always have to think like you though

no one has mentioned voting for anything btw

the new school is coming like it or not--we weren't asked

 

Vet: I forgot to mention that "purchase" has an "R" in it. 

 

I agree that no one wants to move to a city with poor roads and other infrastructure.  Concurrent who wants to move to a city with a poor middle school in a lousy area of the city?  Think of it as school infrastructure.  I believe that it's a necessary pre-condition to getting more people to consider moving to Middletown.  Of course there is much more that the schools district must do .. such as getting the academic performance up...but the infrastructure is one of the ingredients.

 

Universities do have 100 - 200 year old buildings.  But they have been modified and rehabilitated many times over the years.  Why would you want to spend that kind of money on Middletown's Middle School when you can't change the location and would spend about as much rehabilitating as building new?  That would be a waste of money.

If it is true that the city master plan is to reduce the population by 50% then I agree that it makes no sense to build a new middle school as all of the students will fit into the existing high school.  However, I can't find anywhere in the master plan the objective of reducing the population.  On the contrary what I read points to the objective of growth.  Please show me where in the master plan that the objective is to reduce the population.  Regarding the school office move to city hall, the administration's and board's objective, as reported, was three fold.  1. reduce cost 2. provided a safer area for district employees to work.  3. potentially improve communications between city and school district personnel.

 

The last I looked Cinci State was at least a mile from Vail and served a completely different clientele than Vail.  There is a huge difference between 20 - 30 year olds and 11 - 13 year olds.  Plus I don't see what the location of Cinci State and the Mayor's dream, which may or may not actually happen, for downtown has to do with a Middle School.  Downtown is a wasteland and may or may not turn around.

 

The last report I saw on student projections was that it would remain fairly steady for the next 5 - 10 years.  Regarding rehab cost versus build new cost, the paper reported that the architectural firm determined that the cost of each was about the same.  You'd have to look at his report to see the details.  One thing to keep in mind that a rehabbed building must be brought up to the same standards as a new building you can't pick and choose what to do.

 

 

 

Acclaro: The timing is not our idea.  It is dictated by the state.  They have a pot of money that they are sharing with school districts to upgrade their facilities subject to a sliding scale requirement that the local district pay a percentage of the costs through local property taxes. When the money from the state is gone, it is gone, and there may not be another offer of capital funds for 100 years.  The state 1 week ago called our number, said there is $40 million for Middletown City Schools, provided we pass a bond levy and follow all of their rules and regulations and standards for building and rehabbing. The problems with the Vail building go well beyond the lack of air conditioning (which is a serious problem). It is literally falling apart.  Your unsupported assertions to the contrary, the state conducted a detailed study of renovating to their standards or build new, and determined the costs to be approximately the same. Your comments about old university buildings do not fit with what I have seen on many college campuses in the last several years. At every single one I've been at, they are gutting old buildings leaving nothing old but the facade, and constructing new ones from scratch.

 

Vet: I can't explain any better than I already have why this property will be good for the high school site, without drawing a map, which I can't do on here.  I think anyone who has been to the high school at drop off/pick up or when thre is an event, will agree that traffic flow is very cramped. The drive next to 4500 Manchester is signed as one-way entrance only, but people use it as an exit all the time.

 

Neil Barille: Wildwood CC is indeed hurting. But it is not for sale, and from everything I have heard, those old guys will hang on to their golf course even though it is killing them financially.

 

SpiderJohn: A bond levy will be on the November ballot, for 3.95 mills plus a .26 permanent improvement levy (permanent improvement levy will generate dollars they may only be used for capital maintenance and is required before the state will kick in its $40 million). So, the community will decide. And, the community has been asked for their input dozens of times throughout this 10 year Master Plan process. A majority who participated in the many forums, meetings and surveys support a new middle school and a renovated high school. We will see if a majority of voters agrees.

 

I was a member of the last public committee mandated by time period to review and update the plan.

That committee was quietly dis-banded without notice, mostly due to constant lack of a quorum and not a lot of agreement to change much of anything. It was headed by Mr.K, with a couple of cameos by Mr.A. Don't remember reading about or any mention of reducing population or a 28,000 figure. I probably still have a copy of the plan.

 

We had a nice, diverse group who never bothered to attend or be excused, and when the cronies tried to run a 6-member meeting to approve "changes"(by declaring everyone not present removed from the board--thereby establishing the 6 present members as a quorum), a few quickly objected to the method and propriety of the action.

 

Never held another meeting, and never received any notice of the committee being dissolved.

 

True story