Onlookers and administration were attentive as the GPD Group presented designs for the exterior of West Geauga Schools’ new campus Feb. 10.
Onlookers and administration were attentive as the GPD Group presented designs for the exterior of West Geauga Schools’ new campus Feb. 10.
West Geauga Schools Board of Education passed a resolution Dec. 16 to place a $128 million bond issue on the May 6 ballot.
The bond would fund a combined-campus, a new auditorium and field house for school and community use. School officials have been exploring facility upgrades and a combined-campus off and on since 2018.
Abby Rainieri, manager of planning and design at GPD Group, presented a master facilities update last Monday during the regular school board meeting with possible design ideas for the combined campus, expected to be completed in fall of 2028.
“The practice fields would essentially go in place of the existing high school and the high school would come down in this proposal,” she said, adding they looked at local architecture to develop the first idea, and the middle school would be on the left and the high school on the right with a central access point.
“We think that the exterior of the building is one of the most important things that we need a lot of public input on,” she said. “But, we took some cues from some architecture in the area and some of the Western Reserve influence in different portions of the district and this is just showing one idea of what the building could look like.”
Rainieri emphasized they’ll be seeking feedback from staff, teachers, parents and administration for upcoming design proposals.
A member from the audience asked if the “disruption to their education would be minimalized” during this process.
“Yep, everything could remain in place until the new building was open and we were ready to swing high school students over,” Rainieri said.
The combined campus would be built on the current practice fields to curb any physical disruptions.
District parent Katie Davis asked questions about youth sports spaces.
“With our current facilities, we really struggle with having enough indoor practice space for basketball and outdoor space for baseball, softball and football, but that’s just the sports I know,” Davis said, adding West Geauga doesn’t host their own basketball games.
Davis said she hopes they can keep the amount of fields they have and add more gym spaces in the district.
Board President Christina Sherwood emphasized the proposed design plans are likely to change.
“I think that it’s really important to underscore what you were saying about it is purely a conceptual notion of what it looks like right now. It could look entirely different,” Sherwood said. “There has been no plan discussed because we are not there yet. So, if something about that conception is bothersome, definitely reach out. We can talk about it. Nothing up there is for sure.”
Superintendent Richard Markwardt said they did a good job putting together the plan based on the feedback so far.
“I think you’ve done a nice job of putting together what the various stakeholders said they wanted to see in a building and giving us a first glimpse of what a building could look like that could house the ideas that the community brought forward,” he said.
