Bowling Green City Schools leaders have taken the first step to putting a bond issue to pay for a new high school on the ballot.
A $72.8 million bond request will be on the Nov. 7 ballot.
At its Tuesday meeting, the board of education unanimously voted to adopt a resolution declaring the necessity for a $72.8 million bond issue.
The paperwork will be sent to the Wood County auditor to determine the millage, but it has been estimated at 5.53, said Treasurer Cathy Schuller.
She said the estimated cost is $193.69 per year or $16.14 monthly for a resident with a home with an appraised value of $100,000.
The bond will be for 30 years, Shuller said.
The new estimate for the cost of the building is up from the $70 million asked for in 2022 due to inflation.
The board also ratified previous actions taken to enter a contract with DLR Group Inc. for the facilities master plan project.
DLR’s pricing proposal was $123,110.
Board President Ryan Myers said a small group of staff and board members has been meeting regularly with DLR representatives.
“The group is working on needed space and determining the necessary square footage for our building project for our new high school,” Myers said. “There’s a lot of excitement.”
Specific information will be shared as plans are finalized in the next few months.
Drawings and mock-ups — including what the building will look like and how it will be used — will be shared as well as financial information, he said.
According to documents approved at the meeting, DLR should have a rendering by the end of August with a presentation to the community in September.
“Our goal is to allow voters to see exactly the what, where and why of how this project will benefit students, staff and the community,” Myers said.
Joe DeMare, chair of the Wood County Green Party who is running for Bowling Green mayor, told the board one way to get the bond issue to pass is to make the building carbon-negative by using solar panels and geothermal heating a cooling.
The goal is to have the building produce more energy than it uses, he said.
DeMare said building a carbon-negative school will garner more voter support. It will have lower maintenance costs, low energy costs and provide the opportunity to sell back solar power in the summer when not used by the building.
“It would also give students in Bowling Green hope,” he said. “If we can show our students a carbon-free future … a school that doesn’t put any carbon in the air and produces more energy than it uses, I think that will help the attitude of all students to be part of something bigger, something cooler, and help the whole community redeem it’s position as a progressive voice.”
The board also approved a lunch price increase for the 2023-24 school year per Senate Bill 210: elementary student breakfast, $2; adult breakfast, $3; adult lunches, $4.75; and elementary student lunch, $3.
The board also took action on several personnel matters:
• Employed Hope Nevins as high school Spanish teacher, Amy Kreilick as elementary library specialist, Laurie Russell as high school reading specialist and Sabrina Egli as Crim Elementary reading specialist.
• Approved the employment of several high school head coaches, including Patrick Carney, cross country; Erika Kimple, girls soccer; Deborah Mathias, volleyball; Joshua Wade, football; Paula Williams, cross country; Paige Bulkeley, girls golf; Kalissa Carpenter, fall, winter and competition cheerleading; Andrew Drumm, girls tennis; Joshua Fox, boys soccer; and Kurt Thomas, boys golf.
• Rescinded the transfer of Debra Ondrus from coordinator of community outreach and student wellness to middle school guidance counselor. The board then employed Ondrus as coordinator of community outreach and student wellness for the 2023-24 school year for $99,156, paid for from wellness funds.
• Employed Katie Perkins as curriculum coordinator from Aug. 1, 2023, to July 31, 2025, at an annual salary of $88,000. She will be paid for up to 10 days in July at a per diem rate of $391.
• Hired Richelle Oberlin as assistant treasurer for $82,000.
• Accepted resignations from Katie Bacon, assistant high school principal, effective Aug. 2; Ruby Watkins, secretary for pupil services, effective July 1; and Stephanie Wendt, EMIS secretary, effective June 23.
• Hired Merceddes Futo, as high school and EMIS secretary, and Ann Rieman, pupil services secretary.
• Approved the transfers of Alexa Milks, from secretary at Kenwood Elementary to secretary at the high school, and Jennifer Morlock, from part-time secretary at Crim Elementary to full-time secretary at Kenwood Elementary.
