Several upcoming construction projects recently approved by AC Valley’s school board will address “the needs that we have on campus,” according to district superintendent David McDeavitt.

At an estimated cost of about $4 million, the district will see numerous upgrades to physical structures around the school’s campus. The district will take out a new bond to fund these projects. The board approved the plans at its May 12 meeting.

The plan includes refinancing a bond previously taken out for a 2018 elementary school project.

McDeavitt laid out the need for a bond in a presentation to the school board. He said due to increasing outside cyber school costs, increasing energy costs, transportation costs, health care, retirement and limited state funding, AC Valley “does not have the extra capital in our fund balance to complete several large facilities projects.”

He said the district has aging infrastructure that has reached its life expectancy and needs replaced.

Originally, the bond was set to be paid off in 2028.

“What we plan to do as we refinance that bond, there will be several projects. It will be budget neutral, so the payment will be the same as it has been since we took it out and we’ll extend it out for about 12 years,” McDeavitt said.

Of the projects included, the one with the most emphasis on importance to the district is the renovation of the high school auditorium. Built in 1965, McDeavitt said it needs renovations on the inside, with nothing structural required, but other elements that need refurbished. The district also will replace the auditorium’s roof.

The auditorium renovation will include new seats, entirely replacing the stage, a new curtain system, electrical and technology work, floor tiling and a new lighting system. The indoor renovation is estimated to cost $1.68 million.

Construction related to the new roof could add an additional $400,000.

Another project McDeavitt specifically said was of importance is making adjustments to the elementary school’s parking lot. He said the district will widen the student drop-off and pickup areas to “ensure the safety of the students coming and going.” The estimated construction budget is slightly over $230,000, due to cracks forming and the need for the lot to be milled and paved.

The district also has plans to redo the varsity football field, the varsity track a handful of parking lots around the campus.

The football field also dates to 1965 and has never been renovated. The field hasn’t hosted a varsity football game since 2021, with the Union/AC Valley co-op team playing their games at Union.

The project will fix uneven terrain, reroute electricity, and install new sod and grass. Depending on how things go, the project is estimated to cost anywhere from $261,141 to $750,996.

The high school’s varsity track currently has big cracks in it. It will need asphalt resurfacing, which alone could cost $610,000.

In total, the projects are expected to cost the district in the range of $3,840,903 to $4,022,487.

With the exception of the 2018 elementary school repairs, McDeavitt said this is the first time in a while the school has made serious upgrades to its facilities. Previously, the district would use PlanCon, a state reimbursement program, to fund construction needs. But that money has since gone away.

“That money went away in 2015, and that’s why nobody’s been doing projects for the last 10 years,” McDeavitt said. “That’s why everyone, like Freeport, like here at AC Valley, Karns City, its gotten to a point where you have to do some upgrades. And fortunately we took care of plumbing, HVAC, we took care of what needed to be done first and foremost, and the community didn’t necessarily see everything we were doing because it was behind closed doors, and it was up on the roof, but we took care of those things. Now we’re at a point where the programs we use on a day-to-day basis are being negatively impacted.”

McDeavitt said the timing was right to fund the projects through refinancing the bond. With concerns school districts have with federal money, as well as escalating cyber charter school costs, refinancing made sense for the projects that have been needed for over a decade, he said.

AC Valley’s 2025-26 budget is set at $20.13 million in total expenditures.

McDeavitt said the district is making a point of being proactive with these projects for the purpose of student use and safety.

The school safety part is particularly important to McDeavitt, who sees a direct correlation between safety and a vibrant school community. It’s why he thinks a lot of schools are trying to upgrade facilities.

“The thing I’ve explained to the board, this isn’t going to cost our taxpayer any more money per year, it’s budget neutral. We’re just paying off the bond and extending that payoff date. We’ve been successful in the past, paid off that elementary bond, our credit is good. We’re just trying to create a community school district that supports the education of all of our students,” McDeavitt said.