Security, Transportation Upgrades Top Chardon Schools’ 5-Year Plan

November 21, 2024 by Allison Wilson

The Chardon Schools Board of Education approved their capital improvement plan Nov. 18, outlining ongoing and future projects over the next five years.

“With this five-year plan … to look out beyond a year or two is tough, but we know in the first year or two, it’s a whole lot more solid with the numbers and the projects at play. The further you go out, obviously, the less certain it is,” said Assistant Superintendent Steve Kofol of project costs and expenses.

The district’s permanent improvement fund currently yields $2.2 million per year between a 2-mill levy voters approved in 2006, miscellaneous revenue from property sales and the like, and 1 mill of inside millage the school board approved transferring to the fund for fiscal year 2025 to help accelerate projects and improvements, Kofol said.

PI levies can only be used for items with a lifespan of five or more years, the acquisition of assets, replacements of similar value or quality, enhancement of an existing asset or preventative maintenance, he said, adding they cannot be used for routine janitorial and utility costs, or for salaries.

Building Upgrades

Notable capital improvement projects started in fiscal year 2024 include phase one of the transportation facility currently under construction on Washington Street, Kofol said.

“That was a big ticket item, coming along very well. I was told today that they are pouring concrete curbs, as well as light posts, so we’re getting there before the weather turns on us for the pavement and concrete to get put in,” he said.

Other “big ticket” items addressed in the last year include a chiller replacement, elevator updates and a security vestibule at the high school, stadium lighting and a new gym floor at the middle school, Kofol said.

Current projects for 2025 involve phase two of the transportation facility, windows and doors, floor abatements at the middle school, tuck pointing at Park Elementary School and more, Kofol said.

He added the capital improvement plan is a living document, projections are just estimates and the document is constantly reviewed, changing year to year and sometimes, from month to month.

The district is also looking at additional door replacement for multiple buildings before the weather turns bad and the high school is currently on phase four for window replacements as they work their way around the building, Kofol noted.

“Like I said earlier, (the capital improvement plan) is a planning tool. It’s subject to change. Things happen throughout the course of the year,” he said, adding depending on the year, projects may be rearranged.

The approximate total for in-progress and complete projects at the high school in fiscal year 2025 was $773,000. The approximate total for the middle school is $138,000 and for Park Elementary School, $565,000, Kofol said.

“We’re working on a security vestibule to be done this summer, with the moving of the main office area to accommodate for that security vestibule,” he explained. “Hence, the higher price tag on that.”

Park, a building from 1938, does not lend itself to an easy installation, he added.

Munson Elementary School can expect classroom floor abatements and replacements, alongside paving and sidewalk work and doors, totaling an approximate $53,000, Kofol said, adding the Early Learning Center will see both playground equipment and door replacements to the tune of about $35,000.

Board President Karen Blankenship noted the reason for all the door replacements is a state mandate.

Transportation projects total about $385,000 for three buses, Kofol said.

“Bus prices — I think I told the board last time I did this report — when I first started, were about $82,000,” he said. “And now, they’re up to $125,000.”

Longer-Term Projects

Kofol compiled a list of projects not included in the five-year plan, ranging from replacing classroom countertops at an estimated total of $25,500, to electrical replacements and updates at an estimated total of $4,572,175.

Also included on the list were items like plumbing and steam trap replacements and HVAC upgrades.

“This is kind of what we have planned for long-term projects that are not even in the plan,” Kofol said, referring to them as his “Christmas list.”

He once again cautioned the costs on display were subject to change.

“The longer we wait to get these things done, the higher the price goes,” he said.

Overall, the longer-term projects totaled $29,527,906.

As they are not in the five-year plan, they could be considered part of a six- or 12-year plan, Kofol said.

Superintendent Michael Hanlon said repairs like the electrical system would involve bringing the buildings up to modern standards.

“My concern is the things on the list that, if they were to fail before we could get to them, could really change our direction,” Blankenship said, listing the plumbing and electrical updates.

Treasurer Deb Armbruster drew attention to the fund’s projected ending cash balance.

“At the end of this year, (Kofol’s) projecting to have a cash balance of $36,000,” she said. “So, he’s got pretty much every penny dedicated to one of these projects.”

That amount isn’t much of a buffer should costs increase, Blankenship said.

With the document being subject to constant change, board member James Midyette asked what the board was committing to in voting on it.

“Most specifically, following through with what we’ve identified for — it’s a lot like when Deb Armbruster presents the five-year forecast,” Hanlon said. “What’s known is the current year and the next year, most specifically, what we’re working towards, but the remaining years are, to some extent, more fluid because we don’t know exactly what will happen.”