BUTLER TWP - The Butler School Board announced Monday night plans to renovate the last of its 13 facilities.

The plans were announced as part of the district's 2004-05 preliminary $74.4 million budget presentation.

Of the proposed 5.5 mill property tax increase for next year, 3.5 mills would go to pay for the $20 million bond issue the district will take out for renovations of the intermediate high school.

The district has 14 facilities - 11 elementary and three secondary buildings. Of those buildings, only the intermediate high school had yet to receive a total renovation.

In the summer of 2002, $71.1 million in renovations to the other buildings was completed.

"It is the only building that has not been renovated in the district and it is now 32 years old," superintendent Ed Fink said of the intermediate school.

The renovations will focus on the mechanical systems, the roof and the electrical and lighting systems, Fink said.

An energy report in December 2003 by First Energy Solutions revealed the intermediate school is an energy nightmare. Energy costs for the intermediate school are $1.64 per square foot versus the $1 per square foot for most of the district's other buildings.

The intermediate school has 298,000 square feet.

The mechanical system, which is original to the building, consists of 24 heating and cooling rooftop units. First Energy's report called the units inefficient and lacking in adequate insulation.

The equipment also is at the end of its useful life, according to Fink and the report.

The roof, also original from 1971, has no insulation. A repair job done in 1978 placed one inch of insulation over the existing roof and then a new roof over top of the insulation. Both roofs now leak.

The electrical and lighting systems are more than 30 years old. Replacement of lighting units would save the district roughly $100,000 per year in its electric bill.

The project would be eligible for $5.49 million reimbursement from the state.

Fink said the district hopes to get funding in the next two months for the project, while interest rates are still low.

The start time for the project is the summer of 2005.

The building, built in 1971, has had several minor facelifts over the past 10 years, totaling $1.16 million. They include:

Repair of existing exterior wall panels, $180,000

Re-upholstering of the auditorium seating, $55,000

Improvements to the roof, $137,610

Gym floor, $88,900

Hallway floor tile/lobby carpet, $76,800

Ceiling tile/hall lighting, $200,000

Fire alarm system, $123,269

Parking lot/retention pond, $76,380

Auditorium sound system, $43,452

Auditorium lighting system, $63,078

Student furniture, $99,487.