School leaders outline remaining Horticulture complex work, ask board to consider tuition‑revolving funds

School officials told the Board of Trustees that roughly $400,000 will be needed to complete remaining elements of the agricultural complex and asked trustees to consider using tuition‑revolving funds to close the gap. Administrators offered a priority list that included demolition of an older horticulture garage, construction of an isolation annex for the pocket‑pet lab and removal and replanting of large pines near the hospital right‑of‑way.

The school reported a complex funding history. Administrators said they originally earmarked about $600,000 from the tuition‑revolving account for a set of renovations but then received a combination of state grants, insurance proceeds and a $1.2 million NEA grant that covered much of the work. "Most likely having to give into this original revolving total about $400,000," the school leader told trustees, adding that not all previously planned work was required after grants were applied.

Staff sketched rough cost estimates: demolition of the existing horticulture garage and related slab work at about $100,000; a student‑built isolation annex for the pocket‑pet lab with equipment estimated around $50,000; and tree removal/replacement near the hospital at roughly $50,000. Officials said those three items alone would total roughly $200,000, and additional smaller tasks could bring total needs to the amount cited. The school emphasized these numbers are rough estimates and that choices about sequencing affect operating budgets and contingency reserves.

Trustees debated timing and sources of funding. One trustee suggested waiting until May to see fiscal results and enrollment trends before spending tuition‑revolving funds; another argued for spending now because construction costs and inflation could increase future costs. Staff noted that if the board opts not to spend tuition revolving this year, other maintenance or contingency lines would be the likely alternative and could strain operations.

Administrators also asked trustees to consider retaining the existing greenhouse and headhouse in the short term while demolishing the garage and other eye‑sore structures to make the site safer and more functional. They stressed that, if the board decides to keep the headhouse, it should also commit to using it for instructional purposes to justify the ongoing maintenance.

No formal vote to commit funds was taken at the meeting. Trustees asked staff to assemble a concise recap sheet with itemized options and to return with a recommendation at a subsequent meeting, and some trustees requested the finance director be present for that discussion.