Peters board continues to examine how to include pool at new school
Harry Funk/Observer-Reporter
Peters Township Middle School student Cassie Coleman, a competitive swimmer, was one of the many people who spoke at the school board’s May 21 meeting in favor of including a swimming pool in the initial construction of a new high school.
By Harry Funk/Staff writer/hfunk@thealmanac.net
By Harry Funk/Staff writer/hfunk@thealmanac.net
Option to include a natatorium in lieu of several other facets of the project
Option not to include a pool
PT board continues to examine how to include pool at new school
{child_byline}By Harry Funk
Staff writer
hfunk@thealmanac.net
{/child_byline}
Peters Township School Board will conduct a special voting meeting at 6:30 p.m. May 29 to present information pertaining to including a swimming pool in the initial construction of a new high school.
The board has a 60-day window to award contracts following the May 16 opening of bids for the project.
A large contingent of residents attended the board meeting Monday night to show support for a pool. The board met again Tuesday night for further discussion about how to proceed with the project, reviewing overall funding and two possible scenarios for construction, one with and the other without the swimming facility.
Because of the favorable timing of the initial bond issues for the project, the district was able to borrow beyond the $90 million originally estimated while staying within its 1.5-mill goal for the impact on homeowners, according to communications coordinator Shelly Belcher.
“Based on that experience and the flexibility it provided, the board directed the administration to explore the taxpayer impact of additional borrowing for the funding that would allow us to include the natatorium in the project,” Belcher said.
A natatorium, which would cost about $5 million, is listed as a “deduct alternate,” a defined portion of the work that is priced separately from the bulk of the project.
With total estimated funding available of $91.55 million for overall costs, the project including the pool stands at $3.59 million over budget, according to information provided by the district.
Also regarding finances, the school board Monday unanimously approved the district’s proposed final general fund budget for 2018-19. A board finance committee meeting is scheduled June 11 to review the $65.85 million spending plan, and adoption of the final budget is targeted for June 25.
The budget calls for a .31-mill real estate tax increase, with a new rate of 13.5 mills. Township property owners would pay $1,350 for each $100,000 in assessed value, or an extra $31, in the coming fiscal year.