Lebanon County CTC presents six renovation options with wide-ranging cost estimates

The Lebanon County Career & Technology Center (CTC) director laid out six options for renovating or replacing the center during the Cornwall-Lebanon School District Board meeting on June 16, 2025, showing proposals that would enlarge the facility from about 166,000 square feet to roughly 205,000 square feet and giving planners a wide range of preliminary cost estimates.

The options ranged from targeted mechanical upgrades with an addition to options that would demolish and replace large portions of the building. "Our current square footage is roughly right around 166,000 square feet. We're looking to expand our building to around 205,000 square feet," the director said, describing an approach that would add approximately 50,000 square feet while updating systems and finishes.

Why it matters: the CTC serves career-technical students from multiple districts; the board and the Joint Operating Committee (JOC) will have to weigh construction disruption to hands-on programs, capital costs, and which entity will finance bonds and own the finished facility.

Key details from the presentation: - Option A (baseline mechanical upgrades plus expansion): presenter offered a baseline mechanical-only figure of about $44,000,000 and an expanded cost range for the full Option A in the tens of millions (presented as roughly $70.79 million to $80 million). - Options B, C and D (reconfigure or remove A and B wings, keep C/D/E in various configurations): each were presented with similar total cost estimates around $90,000,000. - Option E (vertical expansion; two-story addition in part of the plan) and Option F (complete new building on the site footprint): the presenter described Option F as a full replacement estimated at about $117,000,000; the presenter gave a figure for Option E that was not clear on the record and will need written confirmation from the project team. - Roof lifecycle: the presenter said a full roof replacement would be a major future expense and noted Option A could require a $5.4 million roof bill in 5–10 years, while other configurations could reduce future roofing costs.

Board members asked how the plans would affect shop and lab programs such as diesel technology, automotive, welding and auto body. The director said he could not relocate many hands-on labs into temporary trailers and that any option would affect every classroom; he said the design team is still working on swing-space and transition plans. "All our labs, I just cannot throw ... welding class into a trailer and continue the education process," he said.

Program capacity: the director said enlarging average class sizes from about 18 to 20–22 students could add "over a 100 kids" of capacity and noted a current waiting list of 266 students for CTC programs.

Governance and financing: the presenter and board members discussed that the authority that owns the CTC bonds (the local authority made up of district-appointed members) will have a role in decisions and financing. The board representative to the JOC was identified as a key participant in next steps.

Next steps: the presenter asked board members to direct further questions to the project team; the board and the JOC will continue reviewing the feasibility study, cost estimates and articles of agreement before any formal financing or bond actions.

The district confirmed that written, detailed cost estimates and transition plans will be provided to member boards and to the authority for review before votes on financing or construction contracts.