Demolition of 65-year-old former Fairborn school expected to start soon

The property has been fenced off and abatement work, which started earlier this month, is “going well,” said Jeff Patrick, district business affairs director.

Due to the building’s age, abatement will involve removal of hazardous material, Patrick said. The targeted time frame for demolition completion is the week of Thanksgiving, he said.

The second phase of the project — which includes building the playground, a parking area and adding landscaping — is expected to begin next June. The gap in work is needed because of transportation storage, Patrick said.

“We have a bus parking lot that we currently are using. And we need access to it all (school) year long,” he said.

“Part of the additional parking lot and (playground) areas would be basically part of that current bus parking lot,” Patrick added. “So, we have to phase it out. It doesn’t always have to be like that. But because of the location and our situation, we have put it into two different phases.”

The new school is two stories and 130,444 square feet. It is next to the playground at the old school, formerly known as Five Points.

Rauch’s $676,376 bid was the only submission below $820,000, according to Fairborn records. All other businesses gave proposals between $822,000 and $999,600, documents show.

Roughly half of the cost will be funded by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission as part of Fairborn’s plan to rebuild schools, Patrick said.

Costs for Phase II have not yet been estimated, and the work will likely be bid early next year, he added.

Fairborn voters approved a 2.95-mill bond levy in 2016 to build new primary and intermediate schools.

They also passed a 5.83-mill combined bond and levy to fund construction of a $70 million high school, performing arts center and athletic complex.

As part of the demolition, the school district will be offering free bricks at a site outside of the fenced-in area, Patrick said.

“People are sentimental in all school districts toward the schools,” he said. “We trying to be respectful to those memories.”