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Solon Springs committee discusses April 2026 referendum, feasibility study for building upgrades
Summary
Board members debated launching a feasibility study and ad hoc committee ahead of a possible April 2026 capital referendum to address renovations, daycare and workout space, and safety upgrades; past estimates ranged "anywhere from $10,000,000 to $22,000,000," and attaching a new wing could add about $650,000 for sprinklers.
The Solon Springs School District committee of the whole took up a detailed discussion April 7 about whether to pursue a capital referendum in April 2026 to fund building renovations and possible new facilities.
The presenter (S5) told trustees that the district should begin planning now if it hopes to hold a referendum next April and recommended commissioning an independent feasibility study to determine true facility needs. "If we're looking at an April '26 referendum, this is where we should begin," S5 said, urging the board to form an ad hoc committee and solicit proposals from contractors to assess the district's spaces and priorities.
Trustees debated the scope of work. One board member (S3) noted that earlier plans had broad cost ranges: "We said anywhere from 10,000,000 to 22,000,000," a figure trustees raised as a caution against overreach. Board members discussed options ranging from a modest standalone building to adding a wing, with trade-offs including construction type and long-term maintenance.
Officials also flagged technical cost drivers. S3 noted that attaching a wing to the existing school would trigger additional fire-safety requirements: adding a sprinkler system could cost "another $650,000," a consideration that has previously driven decisions to keep some additions separate from the main school.
Board members described recurring questions that the feasibility study should address: what the district truly needs versus wants, whether a colocated daycare and workout facility make sense operationally, and how any new space would be used by students and the wider community. S5 cautioned that the feasibility contractor would gather input from district staff and the community and produce options for trustees to refine.
The board did not set a final scope or approve funding for a feasibility study at the meeting. Trustees asked staff to analyze past survey data and report back; the discussion will continue at a future meeting as the board considers whether to move toward a public referendum.
What happens next: trustees asked staff to prepare additional background (past survey results, projected costs, and a draft request for proposals) for a follow-up discussion at the next meeting.
