Architects Rabe + Partners presents plans to the community
Overlay of current IHS campus with building construction dates. (Architects Rabe + Partners)
The Italy School Board along with Architects Rabe + Partners invited the community to come down and discuss the master improvement plan for both Stafford and high school campuses.
The Slideshow
Mr. Rabe started by going over a slideshow that he had created. Mr. Rabe’s presentation covered a pretty in depth review of both the high school and Stafford campuses. He also had a list compiled from multiple interviews with teachers from both campuses to discuss their needs and what was most important to them.
The latter part of the slide show showed the different building options and the budgets for each. The school board is looking to pass a bond for $10,500,00.
One of the major changes will be the separation of the junior high campus and the high school campus. Currently, there is a basic separation between the two, but with this new plan these two age groups would not mix on a daily basis.
Download the complete slideshow here.
The Master Plan
The master plan is the ultimate goal of the building committee. The master plan includes:
| Building | Priority Items | Master Plan |
| Stafford Elementary Upgrades | $5,000,000 | $5,400,000 |
| High School Upgrades and Junior High Upgrades | $1,160,000 | $1,600,000 |
| Band Hall | $1,400,000 | $1,400,000 |
| Cafetorium | $3,000,000 | $3,000,000 |
| Gymnasium Upgrades | - | $700,000 |
| Locker Room Addition | - | $800,000 |
| Fine Arts Addition | - | $1,200,000 |
| Vo-Ag / CT Complex | - | $3,900,000 |
| Dome Addition | - | $200,000 |
| Athletic Fields | - | $5,350,000 |
| Total | $10,560,000 | $23,110,000 |
Priority Items
The priority items are the items that we can afford to do now. The plan as discussed in the meeting is to pass a bond for the $10,500,000 now, and when that is complete we can look at getting the balance of the work over the next 5 to 10 years.
Funding
One of the main discussions from the community was about the tax increase. Mr. Jimmy Hyles had mentioned that with the addition of the Wal-Mart and the Love’s Truck Stop, our school district was going to enjoy a fairly healthy increase in tax income for our district. It was voiced many times that it is about the kids, no matter the cost. Mr. Rabe did tell us that the tax tables listed in this article did not include revenue from the Wal-Mart as of now.
The Building Committee
At the meeting, there was a sign sheet for the “Building Committee.” The school is trying to get a group of 12 to 15 citizens from the community to join. Please contact [email protected] if you are interested in joining this committee.
Conclusion
Over all the community is generally excited about these new buildings. From my seat, it seemed that all were generally for the new upgrades and the new technologies that will be available to the students. I personally am excited to see these upgrades to our school, and I truly believe it will be an asset to our children and our community.
See the image captions for more details.