FREDERICKTOWN — The new school building at Fredericktown is almost completed, and the district is within about two weeks of getting a final occupancy permit.
Superintendent Dan Humphrey said the custodians have been hard at work getting floors waxed and materials moved into rooms, and staff members will be permitted to work as much as they want to get settled into their new work areas starting Aug. 6.
“The $20 million addition is about 104,000 square feet,” said Humphrey. “It will be heated by a geothermal system utilizing a closed loop design comprised of 140 wells, each 300 feet deep. The project is coming in under budget; as a result, some of the items such as the metal sloped roof, an upgraded floor in the main public areas, some additional casework, and the additional cost of the geothermal system will now be co-funded with the Ohio School Facilities Commission. Initially, these items were to be 100 percent locally funded.”
The kindergarden through 12th-grade building has been a nine-year project in cooperation with the OSFC and the Fredericktown community.
“Because the community said ‘yes’ to a bond issue in November of 2000,” Humphrey said, “the district was able to do Phase 1 of the project and ‘lock in’ the local share at 29 percent. Had the community waited until 2006 to decide to build, because of the state’s funding equity list, the district share would have been 52 percent. This results in a net savings to the Fredericktown taxpayer of over $6 million.
“The total K-12 facility is 176,000 square feet, or slightly over 4 acres under roof,” he contnued. “The sidewalk going around the building is about one-third of a mile. When completed, it will be a $28 million facility with the state of Ohio, through the OSFC, paying 71 percent of the total cost.”
A dedication of the building is being planned for Sunday, Sept. 14, at 3 p.m. The building will be open that day for tours at the conclusion of the dedication ceremony.