The Twin Rivers R-X Board of Education was presented with two preliminary building options by CTS Group as well as a way to fund the possible additions by LJ Hart & Company during Tuesday's meeting.
The first option was the addition of a new middle school adjoined to the existing high school at Broseley. The buildings would connect through a corridor.
The single story, 39,500 square foot building would hold 12 classrooms, each designed for about 24 students and a gym designed to seat 832 during an event.
Located outside the gym would be a mechanical area and concession stand space. The design also includes a media center, library, boys and girls locker rooms with showers and a science room near the existing greenhouse.
CTS Group Project Development Engineer Brandon Little said the middle school option is set back about 8-10 feet from the street, which left plenty of room to move or add items to the plan.
"This is just a preliminary start," Little said. "Things can be added or adjusted."
One example of an adjustment Little pointed out was the extra area outside the mechanical area. Little said since the district had a rooftop HVAC unit, the mechanical area could be made smaller.
The second option was to build a new high school at Broseley, which would move the middle school students to the current high school building.
Little said the two proposed options were very similar except for the high school building being larger at 46,000 square feet, and 18 classrooms, instead of 12.
The rendering also placed the media center next to the gym with corridors running between it and classrooms.
The gym would seat more at 1,040. The current gym seats just over 1,000 and the board expressed wanting to see more seats added to the proposed gym.
Little said extra rows of bleachers could be added at one end of the gym adding a couple hundred more seats.
The board also expressed interest in an area for a school nurse and possible FEMA building.
Superintendent Jeremy Siebert said the district recently found out it was not in the current pool for a FEMA building.
"We came up with the best decision now to not disrupt existing buildings," Little said.
Siebert added a large number of community surveys distributed over the past several weeks showed a big majority of the community was in support of a tax increase for a new building.
"We had 439 say yes and 171 say no," he said.
Siebert also said a future goal would be to add early childhood centers at the Fisk and Qulin campuses. He said with the middle school students in Broseley, this would open up room in each location.
CTS also proposed the design/build concept for both options presented to the board.
CTS Group Project Development Engineer Rodney Bridger said the method has a 23 percent faster delivery speed and less of a risk for the school district by having only one contract.
"The architect will work for CTS," Bridger said eliminating confusion between the contractor and the district.
LJ Hart & Company presented three different increased tax levy options to the board in order to fund the proposed estimated $9 million project and to pay for the $1.9 million in renovations done throughout the district over the summer.
An operating tax levy requires 50 percent approval from voters to pass.
Increased amounts of $0.99, $1.07 and $1.15 were all looked at to be a part of the April 2018 operating tax levy question's ballot language.
LJ Hart & Company President Tom Pisarkiewicz said all three amounts would be sufficient to support the high end estimate of $9 million. A middle school is estimated to cost $7.5 to $8.5 million, while a high school is estimated to cost $8.5 to $9.1 million.
Board member Donna Sue Ashcraft-Fincher asked Pisarkiewicz what tax increase amount he would recommend. He said while he would like to ask for an amount below $1, the district should ask for what they need. He believed that to be an increase of $1.15.
For example, if a $0.99 tax increase were passed, a citizen with a residential property appraised at $250,000 with an assessed value of $47,500 would see an annual tax expense for levy increase of $470.25. The same property would see an annual tax increase of $508.25 if the $1.07 were passed and $546.25 if the $1.15 were passed.
During its December meeting, he board is expected to decide what amount to be put on the April ballot. The district has 3,900 registered voters.
The board approved LJ Hart & Company by a vote of 5-2 as their underwriter for the project with Donna-Sue Ashcraft-Fincher and David Dugger voting no. If the levy fails, the district will not owe LJ Hart money, but will have to get creative when it comes to future budgets.
The board also approved a transfer of funds of $92,868.93 for two energy loans and a bus lease.
The next Twin Rivers R-X Board of Education meeting will be at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 20, at the Central Office board room.