Region 15 board reviews school-replacement options, reimbursement scenarios ahead of possible May referendum

Regional School District 15 officials spent the bulk of their meeting reviewing options, timelines and state-reimbursement scenarios for replacing two elementary schools and preparing for a possible May referendum.

Superintendent Smith told the board that staff and consultants had prepared a timeline showing land due diligence, ongoing community engagement and conceptual designs aimed at supporting a May referendum. "If we are still intending to do a May referendum, these are the things that we need to work through," Superintendent Smith said, outlining parallel work on due diligence and conceptual design.

The district presented three high-level options previously discussed by the space committee: (1) build a single combined school on a large site (previously labeled 3D, which staff said is not feasible), (2) build two schools on existing sites (4B), and (3) rebuild Gainesville and seek a new site for PES (4C). Staff said the working assumption for both replacement schools is about 504 projected students and a building footprint of roughly 95,000 square feet per school, a size the district says reflects current class-size and program expectations rather than the state's formula.

That difference matters for reimbursement. Staff showed total project-cost scenarios and how state reimbursement could change district exposure. In one example the two-school total project cost was presented at about $206 million, dropping to roughly $112 million after the state formulaic reimbursement in certain scenarios; staff also described stacking additional incentives such as a 15% preschool reimbursement and higher reimbursement for qualifying special-education space. "One of the things that you can do is you can go to the legislature and you can ask them for that delta and say based on our community and the needs of our district, we need a space waiver," Superintendent Smith said. But she cautioned that space waivers are handled by the legislature and are not guaranteed.

Staff emphasized the referendum mechanics and timing: the referendum must list the total cost of the project (not assuming any reimbursement), while the district will not have final state grant determinations until after the referendum and after state legislators act. Staff noted the district's grant application for reimbursement will be due to the state on June 30, after a May referendum would occur.

The board reviewed site options. Staff said they had reviewed all parcels of 10 acres or more and identified a privately owned Roxbury Road parcel that remains under consideration but presents challenges, including linear shape and wetlands. Staff described the planned due-diligence sequence: title and land-records review, an initial Phase 1 environmental study, and, if Phase 1 raises no major concerns, a Phase 2 sampling and more detailed analysis. Superintendent Smith said the district expects Phase 1 work on the Roxbury Road parcel to be completed by Thanksgiving.

Board members pressed for more precise cost estimates on several site-specific variables before the board makes a final direction: whether the PES septic system location would affect buildability, the cost of an access road behind PES, demolition costs for existing buildings, and whether sewer connections are available at each site. Staff said they expect harder numbers on those items by January and that the building committee and architects would produce conceptual designs for public review before any referendum language is finalized.

Board members asked how the district would use any reimbursement delta if state support exceeded the district's conservative assumptions. Staff said the board would decide whether to reallocate funds to other capital needs, reduce the bond amount, or pursue other options, but stressed that choices would depend on final grant awards and potential legislative actions.

Superintendent Smith and consultants told the board that including preschool spaces in new buildings would change enrollment numbers and could generate additional state reimbursement under currently discussed incentives. They noted, however, that legislative language and funding formulas could change, and that universal preschool may be mandated by the state in the future.

The board did not approve any referendum language or select a final option at the meeting. Staff said the district would continue monthly updates and return with Phase 1 results for Roxbury Road and firmer cost estimates for existing-site options.