ASHLAND – Ashland City Schools is forging ahead with construction projects throughout the district this summer and looking ahead to renovations at the high school.
Construction is underway at Taft and Edison schools, where Simonson Construction is building new secured entrances. Taft is also getting air conditioning, an update Edison received last summer.
Meanwhile, Adena Corporation is renovating the home side of the grandstand at Community Stadium to make it accessible for individuals with disabilities.
Later this month, the district’s board of education is expected to act on superintendent Doug Marrah’s recommendation to hire VSWC Architects to design a renovation project at the high school. VSWC is the same firm that designed Reagan Elementary School, the new middle school and Archer Auditorium.
The project will include cafeteria renovations, science room renovations, building-wide air conditioning and a transformation of the library into a collaborative learning space, Marrah said. The timeline for the project has not yet been determined, Marrah said, adding that the renovations are likely to be spaced out over two or three summers.
Funding for the high school renovations will come from a combination of capital outlay from the district’s general fund and leftover money from the construction of Reagan Elementary and the new middle school. Administrators and board members have also discussed seeking private donations for portions of the project.
Board members also considered options for the payment of $75,000 from the school district to the City of Ashland. The district previously agreed to pay the sum in exchange for use of the Brookside Park tennis courts for 35 years. The city plans to use the schools’ money, along with private donations and state grant funds, to renovate the courts.
The school district will receive priority scheduling for their tennis teams to use the courts and will be allowed to erect a sign identifying the courts as “Home of the Ashland Arrows.”
Superintendent Doug Marrah told the board the district may pay the money as a lump sum or over a period of three years.
Board member Jim Wolfe said that before agreeing to payment, he would like to see a contract with the city that would include a guarantee that the city will not charge the district for the use of the courts for 35 years. Board vice president Will Gravitt added he would like the contract to include language requiring that the city maintain the courts.
“Mayors will come and go. City councils will come and go,” Wolfe said. “If we’re paying for use of the facility for 35 years, we should have something in writing that says what we’re getting.”
Wolfe said that in the early stages of planning, the school district was willing to pay half the cost and to provide ongoing maintenance if the facility would be built on school property, but the city chose to renovate the Brookside courts instead.
