Picture courtesy of Circleville City Schools Website
Earlier this school year, the Circleville City School District put the finishing touches on what was a five year construction project with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (first breaking ground April 4, 2012). The multi-faceted project ushered in a new era of improvements and opportunities for our students through the creation of three new state of the art academic facilities.
Aside from the initial project, the charitable support of our Champion’s Fund Team provided for the installation of new athletic facilities including the Berger Field House that is above and beyond similar training structures in the area.
With the conclusion of the construction project, the district received back nearly $1.6 million of Locally Funded Initiative dollars (LFI). LFI is defined as improvements associated with a renovation project beyond the scope of work funded by the commission (state). As a part of the $1.6 million LFI return, the monies must fulfill its originally funded purpose by Ohio Revised Code.
Being entrusted with tax payer funds to provide and sustain 21st century facilities for generations of Tigers is a responsibility district administration is proud to oversee said superintendent Jonathan Davis.
“Due to the hard work of Mrs. Rhoads (Treasurer), Mr. McMahon (former Superintendent), and the school board the project was completed under budget,” said Superintendent Jonathan Davis. “Our students are most assuredly in a better position to succeed today because of the diligent financial stewardship of past and current leadership which is a testament of the board’s dedication to high quality education and the community’s willingness to partner in systemic success for our students.”
With the anticipated return on the horizon, the district put together a Facilities Committee made up of parents, teachers, administrators, and representatives of the Board in 2017. In recent years, Circleville City’s new campus has served as a recreational hub on the northeast corner of town and putting together a collaborative team of staff and community members was the next logical step for evolving in that capacity with the LFI improvements return.
This group was facilitated by professionals from MSA Architects of Columbus, OH on the creation of an overall campus facilities plan and vision. As part of their work, the group ranked facility needs and improvements that would benefit students and the community. The group identified an area of need that included new bleachers, a new press box, a new track, and addressing the lack of parking at the Auxiliary Field Area (close to Tennis/Softball).
On February 13th, 2018, as a result of this collaboration, superintendent Jonathan Davis made a recommendation to the board of education to accept competitively bid contracts as a means to efficiently and cost effectively begin these projects. The goal is for the new outdoor facilities projects to begin this Spring, with little disruption to track season, and it is to be completed by the beginning of the 2018-19 school year.
An outdoor facilities project of this kind further enhances Circleville City’s prospects of becoming a sought out destination for regional marching band and athletic contest hosting which will in-turn help to sustain and fund student extracurricular programming.
“We are so blessed by the investment this community has made in the development of its greatest asset, our youth” said Davis. “We are working hard to put together a high quality education, in state of the art facilities, while also being fiscally conscious. This new project provides us another opportunity to provide for our students, while continuing to maintain a healthy financial forecast into the coming years. It is a really exciting time to be a Tiger.”
