LOUDONVILLE — Shayne McCaskey army crawls his way through a two-and-a-half foot wide crawl space that goes under the length of all the ground-floor classrooms at McMullen Elementary School at least twice a year for regular maintenance — more if something is wrong with plumbing in one of the rooms.
The crawl space is the only way to access the steam lines for those classrooms. McCaskey, Loudonville-Perrysville Schools’ maintenance and facilities director and transportation director, said inspecting those lines is important.
“You wouldn’t know there was a problem until we found the problem,” McCaskey said.
McMullen Elementary, built in 1954, houses kindergarten through third graders.
But the building has several issues, from asbestos-filled floor tiles, cracks in the walls where bees are coming into the building and a floor-to-wall separation, which was discovered when a teacher’s yardstick fell into the separation.
The district hired a structural engineer to assess the building in November of 2024.
“The floors of this building are comprised of concrete fill on a system of building paper integrated with steel-wire mesh,” the engineer’s assessment stated.
“… Supporting the concrete floor is a system of steel joists at approximately two-foot intervals. It should be noted that this system of building-paper-and-mesh is no longer practiced in modern construction.”
The investigation stated the structural engineer did not believe the floor had lost structural support. It recommended aesthetic and other fixes.
But for McCaskey, aging infrastructure in the buildings means seemingly simple problems can be challenging to fix. That goes for McMullen and other buildings, like C.E. Budd School.
“(Budd) is probably the most challenging building to do the repairs in because of the aging cast iron drains, the galvanized piping and our heating system,” he said.
According to McCaskey and Superintendent Jennifer Allerding, the buildings at Loudonville-Perrysville Schools have at times been a barrier to student learning. They have posed security problems.
Budd School also lacks access for students with physical disabilities.
It comes at a cost
The state of the district’s buildings is a driving force behind a bond issue and income tax levy on the May ballot. That tax issue would provide funding for a new building if passed. It has a $69.2-million price tag, with taxpayers asked to shoulder $41 million.
Loudonville’s buildings versus other school districts in the county
Budd Elementary was built in 1926, nearly 100 years ago. McMullen went up in the 1950s, and Loudonville High School is the district’s newest building, which opened in 1964. Budd Elementary is the oldest school building currently in use in Ashland County. McMullen is among the oldest as well.
By comparison, Hillsdale’s new building finished construction in 2023; Ashland City Schools’ oldest buildings, Taft and Edison, were built in 1954, but renovated in 1995; and Mapleton’s high school was built in 1963.
Previous Ashland Source reporting revealed schools’ conditions have impacts on truancy, graduation rates, enrollment and test scores.
The district first attempted to pass a bond issue for a new building last November. That effort failed by about 12 points at the polls. Opponents to the bond issue this fall cited concerns about its cost.
Allerding has said the district’s facilities issues persist, regardless of the bond issue’s passage or failure at the polls.
The district has a permanent improvement levy meant to cover the cost of repairs. The levy generates $297,000 annually.
Since Allerding took over in August 2023, she said the district has spent $535,000 per year on facilities — far more than the PI levy. It’s been outspending the PI levy for years, Allerding said.
That additional money comes out of the district’s general fund. She attributed that figure to some larger issues the district has faced, like flooding challenges at Budd School and sewer-line issues at Budd and McMullen.
For McCaskey, the facilities’ issues pose a daily challenge.
“Not everything’s so hard it can’t be done,” McCaskey said. “But, I mean, we have days that are good, some days that are bad.”
Day-in-the-life
McCaskey took over facilities at Loudonville-Perrysville Schools 11 years ago. He came to the district after a stint working at Ashland City Schools. He switched districts because he lives in Loudonville. McCaskey said he has been in industrial maintenance his entire life.
At Loudonville-Perrysville, McCaskey usually begins his days at 6 a.m., checking the temperatures of the classrooms in each of the buildings to make sure everything’s working, so students won’t be too hot or cold.
Then, it’s a matter of getting students to school. He may leap into action to drive a bus or van if needed.
He does everything with a smile on his face. He doesn’t complain, he doesn’t fuss about things, he doesn’t go around talking about, ‘a new facility would help this issue.’
Jennifer Allerding, Supt. of Loudonville-Perrysville Schools
When pickup finishes, McCaskey starts on his to-do list. It’s long and ever-changing. He may set up tables, mow the lawn or help with a classroom temperature issue.
A team of six custodians helps. McCaskey credited them for their hard work taking care of challenges in the building. Teachers have been patient and understanding about the buildings’ issues too, he said.
No two days are the same. His job requires flexibility in case a higher-priority issue comes to his attention.
“I work for a lot of people,” McCaskey said. “I hear from teachers. If I set a priority of my day, it’s just a matter of a principal calling me and saying, ‘Hey, I really need to have this done today.’
“And that’s how we prioritize it, because we wanna meet their needs too. We don’t wanna forget them (if they need us) to do something.”
Above and beyond
To address plumbing and electrical issues at Budd School, McCaskey has tunneled into brick walls.
An outdoor courtyard in the middle of Budd School is closed off because cement is falling off the building and landing in the courtyard.
An entryway in the back of Budd School has water seeping into the brick. The school has had several flooding issues, and the entryway needs to be replaced.
Recently, McCaskey set up a catheter-like tube to deal with a leak in one classroom at McMullen. He hasn’t pinpointed the leak’s origin, so for now, the temporary fix is funneling any dripping water into a classroom sink.
McCaskey had to help the high school principal try to come up with a solution for a condensation problem. Condensation buildup caused students and teachers to slip on a slick floor in one of the buildings.
But they couldn’t find a solution. Putting up fans proved too loud for teachers to do their jobs. Leaving an exterior door open would compromise student security. So, the solution is to tread carefully.
Still, McCaskey said he tries to keep a good attitude about his job. That’s something Allerding said she appreciates about him.
“He does everything with a smile on his face,” Allerding said. “He doesn’t complain, he doesn’t fuss about things, he doesn’t go around talking about, ‘a new facility would help this issue.’
“He just smiles and takes care of it.”
Repair or replace?
Allerding and McCaskey said in light of the bond issue, they’ve received feedback suggesting they make repairs to the current buildings rather than pursuing a new one.
But, they said they think people have misconceptions about how many of the facilities’ issues can be addressed with repairs.
“We’re not gonna be dumping money into just getting by, just the bare minimum,” Allerding said. “We’re fixing things, but it’s at a very slow pace of actually improving and making these buildings more sustainable.
“I mean, we are literally just getting by most times.”
She added it would cost more to fully renovate and repair everything in the current buildings than it would to build a new one. A new building, she said, would likely end up saving money in the long run.
Plus, McCaskey wouldn’t have to go through McMullen’s crawl space anymore.
