LOUDONVILLE — Roger Stitzlein, Kari Reidenbach and Molly Kern, co-chairs of a group advocating for a new Loudonville-Perrysville school, say this year’s choice comes with high stakes.
In their estimation, whether the bond for a new school passes or fails is directly tied to the future of the village of Loudonville.
“Right now, it’s just not a comfortable, conductive educational environment,” Reidenbach said. “But the big thing is that the school is our lifeline. If you don’t have a school, you don’t have a community.”
The bond issue comes with a $53.5 million price tag, which taxpayers would pay off for a period of 37 years. That comes out to $341 per $100,000 of the county auditor’s appraised value.
The new building project’s total cost sits at $71 million, with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC) pledging $15,681,130. Along with the share paid by the OFCC, the district will put $2,306,493 toward the project.
Voters will also be asked to pass a levy for an additional property tax, aimed at providing funds for permanent improvements. That levy would collect $145,000 annually, with $18 per $100,000 of appraised property value cost.
(Below is a PDF with the estimated costs from the Ashland County auditor’s office.)
How to vote
In-district voters in Ashland, Holmes, Knox and Richland counties will have a chance to weigh in on Loudonville-Perrysville’s bond and levy.
Early in-person voting begins Oct. 8 and voters can cast a ballot at their county board of elections. You can find your county’s board of elections on the Ohio Secretary of State’s website: https://www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/toolkit/early-voting/.
Election Day is on Nov. 5. Voters must cast ballots in their precincts and at their designated polling place. Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
You can find your polling place on the Ohio Secretary of State’s website as well: https://www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/toolkit/polling-location/.
Loudonville-Perrysville’s school board approved a resolution to put the bonds and levy on the ballot at its July meeting.
But Stitzlein said the efforts to get voter approval for a new building have been brewing for longer.
A brief history
Loudonville-Perrysville’s current facilities were all built over 50 years ago. The high school is the newest, and was built in 1964. C.E. Budd School opened in 1926, while McMullen opened its doors in 1954.
Stitzlein, formerly the CEO of Loudonville Farmers Equity, said he has worked on three separate efforts in the past 20 years to pass bonds that would pay for a new school in Loudonville. But since those earlier tries at a new building, costs have gone up.
Stitzlein, along with Reidenbach and Kern, said the group advocating for the bonds and levy didn’t initially want to build a new school.
Back in 2023, a group formed to develop a Master Facilities Plan for the district. Reidenbach, an HR partner at Charles River; Kern, director of nursing for the Galion Avita Health System; and Stitzlein were all part of that process.
Supt. Jennifer Allerding said 45 community members were part of that group, including farmers, business owners and parents.
“It was important that all perspectives were considered and provided the opportunity to collaborate to develop a solution,” Allerding said.
As the group looked into several different options for what the future could look like, it found the costs of repairing the current buildings were almost the same as constructing an entirely new school.
It weighed several options, presenting findings to the community via meetings in April and then offering a suggestion to the board of education afterwards.
… the school is our lifeline. If you don’t have a school, you don’t have a community.
Kari Reidenbach, co-CHair, For L-P Schools
Now, Stitzlein, Kern and Reidenbach are speaking to constituents and holding events to advocate and share information about the new buildings. They’ve also offered tours of the buildings for community members to see the issues.
Their group, “For L-P Schools” has a website that answers frequently asked questions. A Facebook page for the group also advertises several upcoming events for voters to get more information.
Building challenges
According to Allerding, the district is spending a minimum of $509,000 per year addressing maintenance and facility issues. The district has a permanent improvement levy, which voters reapproved earlier this year, to address such issues.
Still, Allerding said the district has had to spend more to maintain facilities than the permanent improvement levy brings in.
“In the 2023-2024 year alone, we had to relocate a classroom at Budd Elementary for two weeks due to a broken sewer line, we addressed several roof issues causing leaks in the buildings, our Budd building experienced minor flooding on two occasions, we had to bring in a structural engineer to assess second story floors that were cracking and dropping, we cancelled school at LHS due to a water main break, and had to close school early due to extreme temperatures in classrooms,” Allerding said.
The bottom line, according to Allerding, is that the district’s facilities are at a point where they need to “be addressed in a significantly more aggressive manner.”
Allerding invited community members with questions to visit the district’s website or attend upcoming meetings for more information.
She said there will be one Oct. 10 at Perrysville Baptist Church, and one Oct. 28 at New Hope Community Church. Both meetings begin at 6:30 p.m.
Allerding said the public is also invited to upcoming tours of the buildings. Those will take place on the following dates:
- Oct. 11 — Loudonville High School at 9 a.m., C.E. Budd School at 12 p.m., McMullen School at 3 p.m.
- Oct. 21 — Loudonville High School at 6:30 p.m.
- Oct. 22 — Budd School at 6:30 p.m.
- Oct. 23 — McMullen School at 6:30 p.m.
Opposition
While the For L-P Schools group has worked to advocate for the bonds and levy, the costs have created concerns for some constituents.
It’s going to be tough, and it’s probably going to ruin a lot of us.
Jason Hellinger, Farmer
The board of education heard a farmer, Jason Hellinger, speak at its July 9 meeting. Hellinger commented on the impact the bond and levy might have on the farming committee.
A third-generation farmer who lives in the district, Hellinger told the board the tax increases would be challenging for the farming community.
“It’s going to be tough, and it’s probably going to ruin a lot of us,” he said.
He added he expected his taxes to increase by thousands of dollars should the bond pass.
Stitzlein, Kern and Reidenbach acknowledged the issues will come with increased taxes. But, they said the impact on farmers may not be as large as farmers are anticipating due to current agricultural use value.
What is CAUV?
Current agricultural use value (CAUV) applies to farmland solely dedicated to commercial agriculture. According to the Ohio Department of Taxation, the CAUV permits land values to fall below market values as long as the land meets certain requirements.
For working farmers, CAUV means their tax bills can fall below the market value for their land. Farmers must apply for CAUV with their county auditor.
Stitzlein encouraged farmers in the area who have concerns about their taxes to look into whether their farms may be CAUV-eligible.
Even though it does come with increased costs, Kern argues those costs are manageable — especially when the stakes are so high.
“We have to pay it forward to the next generation,” Kern said. “… I may have future grandchildren that go to this school district, and I want to make sure that I’m paying it forward to the next generation.
“That’s what a community is. If you don’t use it, but somebody in your community does, it takes care of somebody in your community, it makes your community stronger, it’s a wellness piece, you support it.”
