The four new K-5 schools would be built on the current campus sites of: Shawnee Early Childhood School; Hopewell Early Childhood School and nearby Hopewell Junior School; Lakota West Freshman and adjacent Creekside Early Childhood School and Lakota Central High School and Liberty Junior School and adjacent Woodland Elementary School.
The plan, which also calls for reducing Lakota’s 21 schools to 16 buildings should the tax hike win voter approval, is a “critical” component of a sweeping facilities plan for Butler County’s largest school system, said the leader of the 17,000-student district.
“It is very exciting to announce the future sites of these new schools and paint a clearer picture for our community of what’s in store for the future of Lakota,” said Superintendent Ashley Whitely.
“The construction of these four new schools is critical to our vision for the future of Lakota Schools,” said Whitely.
“Paired with the expansions and renovations that will enhance every single remaining school in our district, we will be in a much better position to meet growing enrollment in already overcrowded schools and operate fewer buildings in a more fiscally responsible manner while also expanding programming options.”
School buildings are a key community issue this fall as Lakota has a two-part tax issue on the Nov. 4 ballot to raise property taxes to build new schools and renovate others.
In July, Lakota officials unveiled plans to ask voters for a school tax increase.
Aging and inadequate school buildings – including crowded classrooms - were cited among the motivators for the Lakota officials seeking a new tax bond issue to raise $506.4 million for a sweeping facilities plan to build new schools, close some and modernize others in the coming years.
Also on the same ballot issue will be a permanent improvement tax levy request for renovation and maintenance of existing and new school buildings.
Any tax school property tax increase would not occur until January 2029 should the ballot issue win voter approval.
“We simply cannot continue delivering the same high caliber educational experience in our current building model,” said Whitely.
Lakota’s “Master Facilities Plan” includes the decommissioning of 10 current Lakota schools, all deemed more cost-effective to replace than to renovate by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission.
According to Lakota officials, following this recommendation also locks the district into a co-funding model that promises a 32% construction reimbursement from the state, which equals approximately $200 million.
The locations of the buildings scheduled to be decommissioned left the facilities committee with several different options for sites on which the new schools could possibly be constructed.
The committee evaluated all possible options against several different factors, including: Geographic balance across the district; current and projected enrollment patterns; availability and condition of existing school properties, including constructability, utility restraints and parking capacity and safety considerations, including transportation, traffic flow and potential environmental issues.”
Lakota officials said the selected sites scored among the highest when graded against these criteria.
Moreover, they said, it is anticipated that the selected locations will allow for construction to occur without displacing students, who would need to continue attending school at the buildings still being used simultaneously at these sites.
“For example, Lakota West Freshman and Lakota Central High School students will have already moved to Lakota West’s main campus by the start of construction. Creekside ECS could remain in operation during the full period of construction.”
Officials said: “The new sites were selected with careful consideration toward maintaining “neighborhood schools” that are equally distributed across both townships and minimizing the duration of bus routes, while balancing the demands of increasing enrollment in specific zones of Lakota’s service areas.
MORE DETAILS
More information on Lakota’s Master Facilities Plan is available online at https://mfp.lakotaonline.com.
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