NEW BERLIN – The Unadilla Valley School District is making headway on a $12.8 million capital project that will bring much needed upgrades to the district’s 13-year-old K-12 building.
The district’s board of education unanimously adopted a resolution last month permitting the project to move forward. The motion authorized renovations and improvements to UV’s school building and bus garage, and construction of a 3,200 square foot pole barn to be used for storage.
According to District Treasurer Michael Brown, the next step is to interview construction management firms; then work with architects to hammer out details of the project.
“Architects are looking to submit plans to the New York State Education Department for approval by the middle of November,” Brown said. “When plans are submitted, it will be up to the State Education Department to give the go ahead.”
In May, voters in the Unadilla Valley School District green-lighted a proposition to make capital improvements that district officials say will enhance logistics in and around the school building. The district plans to foot the bill by using $8.2 million in state aid, up to $3.8 million from capital reserves, and $795,340 from EXCEL (Expanding our Children’s Education and Learning) which is designated for advancements in technology resources.
The project is said to have no tax impact and will leave approximately $2.5 million (or half of what’s currently available) in UV’s building reserve account. The hope is to start a cycle of taking on maintenance and repair projects every three to five years so as not to be in a position of becoming financially overburdened by too many repairs at once.
UV outlined the scope of the project last spring. It includes:
• Renovations to the ag and technology wing to improve safety and add a greenhouse
• Installing video cameras and electronic access linked to the district’s automatic lockdown system
