GEARY – Geary school Superintendent Sean Buchanan will recommend the district start investigating improvements to school facilities, he told the community Monday, including the possibility of new construction.
The discussion came as Buchanan and other school administrators invited community members to the Stegall Long Fieldhouse for a forum on the state of current district buildings and possibilities for the future. During the meeting, Buchanan said he wants to form an exploratory committee made up of community members who can estimate the cost of building a new facility or remodeling the district’s current buildings.
“My recommendation would be that we form an investigative committee with community members on it,” Buchanan said, adding that he’ll bring that up to the Geary school board at its meeting next month. Buchanan said the committee should be made up of “anybody who wants to be on” it, including those who’ve opposed past bond issues in the city.
Attempts to issue bonds for school construction failed under the last Geary superintendent, Todd Glasgow.
Since assuming the superintendent’s role this summer, Buchanan has sought to make the community aware of the schools’ deteriorating condition. He said the district’s annual bills for HVAC, electrical and plumbing repairs routinely range into the “tens of thousands of dollars.”
Before the meeting, the district posted a video and photos on its Facebook account of exposed lights, water and termite damage, chipping paint, flooded sidewalks and other problems the schools currently face. “I’m being told by plumbers, electricians, and so on, that our facilities are at the point where they’re going to need some pretty heavy involvement from the district to keep our buildings functioning,” he said.
Buchanan took feedback from community members who attended. Most agreed that facility upgrades were in order, but emphasized the need for transparency throughout the process. They also hoped for an affordable solution.
“I’m going to tell you right now, we’re probably not talking about a $36 million school,” Buchanan said. “Even an all-in-one, by the way, even if we put it all under one roof, we’re probably looking at somewhere – now, don’t quote me on this … but I’m getting numbers a whole lot closer to $17 million, or $20 million.”
Buchanan said he also hopes to conduct the investigation for little or no cost, rather than paying a firm tens of thousands of dollars for concepts.
The Geary school board is scheduled to meet again on Monday, Nov. 1 at the fieldhouse.