Belleville schools looking at upgrade possibilities of $26M

Representatives from Ittner Architects came armed with charts and drawings of several Belleville District 118 schools — and renovation suggestions that come with a price tag of up to $26 million.

The board took no action on the information, but did ask questions of both the architects and Linda Matkowski, executive vice president at City Securities and a financial adviser to the district.

Union, Abraham Lincoln and Roosevelt elementaries became the main targets in the months-long review of the buildings and available space. Ittner representatives said their work was to address space deficiencies and inadequate drop off and pick up at several schools, among other needs.

“Some of the needs here are in anticipation in what we believe is what’s coming,” Superintendent Matt Klosterman said. He specified areas along 11th Street near Frank Scott Parkway and south of Belleville West that have dozens of homes planned or under construction.

The architects also looked at the possibility of a new building at a new site, but dismissed the scenario quickly after figuring the cost.

“But you don’t need a new building. I’m sorry, I love the architects, but $45 million is too much,” Matkowski said.

The financial adviser said the district could probably “comfortably handle” $20 million infrastructure cost.

“It’s not like you have roofs falling down on kids’ heads,” Matkowski said. “You’ve done a great job and you’ve done it without raising taxes” she told the board.

“But 12 years is a really long time for a school district to not to have any capital process,” she said.

Klosterman reminded the board that about $8 million of the cost, in repairs to buildings, could be spaced out over time, and that could reduce the total cost to about $20 million.

The board took no action on the information.

Other business

▪ As a precautionary measure, the school board will provide a notice of “non re-employment” to 25 paraprofessionals and three part time teachers.

Klosterman said it’s part of the “really standard process” the district performs every year, because it doesn’t yet know what the needs and funding will be for next year.

“We release these folks because now is the time we have to do that, and year in and year out we end up bring back most of those folks,” Klosterman said.

▪ The eighth grade graduation will be on May 23, with the last day of school being May 24.

▪ Next year’s school calendar will have school likely starting on Aug. 18, and likely push parent-teacher conferences to Nov. 8, Election Day, to minimize instructional disruption.

This story was originally published March 15, 2016 at 2:11 PM with the headline "Belleville schools looking at upgrade possibilities of $26M."