+ What are the biggest needs of Albany Area Schools?

It’s no secret. We need more space for our elementary students to learn and grow. Growth is a good thing; however, our district lacks enough space to support our growing programs. By 2025, our enrollment is projected to increase, and we won’t have enough space for those students within our current schools. Small class sizes are important to our district, and as we grow, our class sizes will increase.

We’ve done our best to manage our space needs within our existing schools. However, as our enrollment has remained steady, both of our elementary schools are still overcapacity, and our enrollment is projected to grow over the next several years. Also, preschool programming, Special Education, and intervention support are growing and need space. Click here to learn more about our needs.

+ What has the district done to manage our space needs?

Before asking residents to approve this referendum, we’ve taken several steps to manage our space needs. We’ve moved some students from Albany to Avon; we’re currently using all elementary classrooms, including those not originally designed as classrooms; we added seven classrooms to our Albany campus in 2017, closed open enrollment at Albany Elementary in June 2019, closed open enrollment district-wide in 2020 (remains closed today), and moved all preschool programming to Avon Elementary.

As you may know, our district is fortunate to have experienced slow and steady growth year-to-year and is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. This healthy enrollment enables us to continue offering great educational programs and services that would not be possible if our enrollment was declining.

Now that the referendum has been approved, the proposed Early Childhood Center will increase our overall enrollment capacity by freeing up valuable space within our elementary schools. Some of this space would be immediately re-captured for various programs and specialist spaces that have been displaced in recent years — some of these services being provided in hallways. That said, our district’s administration must continuously work with our school board to carefully evaluate our enrollment numbers at each grade level. This annual evaluation helps us to determine whether or not those numbers can be adequately accommodated within our current facilities. We see the need for this annual evaluation to continue even after the Early Childhood Center is occupied.

+ Why can’t we just add space to Albany and Avon Elementary?

In 2017, we added seven classrooms to Albany Elementary, but we still need more space. Both Albany and Avon Elementary cannot support additional space being added. In addition, our core areas such as our hallways, lunchroom and cafeterias, gymnasium, etc. couldn’t support the additional students if we added additional space to those buildings. A new facility makes the most sense to accommodate the educational needs of our students without overloading our common areas.

+ What’s included in the August 9, 2022 referendum?

On Tuesday, August 9, our district passed a single-ballot question to local residents that will transform the former Albany hospital into an Early Learning Center to alleviate space restraints at Avon Elementary and Albany Elementary. After evaluating several options, the school board feels that purchasing and renovating the existing hospital to serve as additional space for early childhood programming is the best long-term option for Albany Area Schools. Click here to learn more about the plan.

+ What’s included in the plan?

The plan includes 16 classrooms, various break-out and collaborative learning areas, an office and specialist space, other necessary support spaces including physical therapy/occupational therapy and speech, a kitchen and serving area, and an addition to serve as a multi-purpose and large motor space for students, staff, and our community. This plan will alleviate our current space constraints in Albany and Avon Elementary (approximately 8-10 classrooms and 200 students total).

+ Why pursue a referendum now?

We’ve analyzed this need for over four years and have sought alternatives to address our needs. Our enrollment is projected to grow over the next several years, and we don’t have the space our students need. Our need for space is not going away, and the longer we wait to address these needs, the higher likelihood of additional costs and time.

+ Why the former hospital?

Our biggest need for additional space is in Albany. Our project team confirms the existing building is structurally sound and serves as a cost-effective solution. We understand that we will need to do asbestos abatement at the hospital, but that is already budgeted in our proposed costs. In addition, those costs are similar to what was spent in 2015 for asbestos abatement at our secondary school.

The site can leverage existing amenities and infrastructure, including proximity to the City park, utilities, parking lots, green space, a playground, etc. We cannot provide the space we need at Avon Elementary or Albany Elementary — the common spaces at Albany Elementary are overcrowded including our cafeteria, hallways, and gymnasium. Adding additional students, specifically to that campus, would put more strain on those common spaces. A new site best positions our district for the future.

+ What happens now that the referendum is approved?

Now that the referendum is approved, the district will begin the design process, led by the project architect. Community input is important during this process, and we will involve staff, administrators, community members, and students who will work collaboratively with the architect throughout the design process. Input would be asked for and encouraged to ensure the design of the new Early Learning Center best represents those who would use the facility.

+ What’s the proposed timeline for the project if the referendum is approved?

Now that the referendum is approved, the design and pre-construction phase is expected to take place from August 2022 to January 2023, the project bid and award phase is expected to take place in spring 2023, and the construction phase is expected to begin in summer 2023. Project completion is anticipated by late 2024.

+ Why is only one option being presented to the community?

State law does not permit different facility options to be presented to voters at the same time. This plan was deemed to represent the greatest value for the lowest cost after years of planning and feedback from our communities and district stakeholders. The school board believes the plan being presented provides the best long-term solution for our district’s future.

+ Why has the district chosen NOT to include an aquatic center in the proposed plan?

During the planning process that involved our Community Task Force, feedback was gathered about addressing our district’s pool at our middle/high school. Although the pool was communicated as a need, it became clear that providing adequate and appropriate educational space to serve the needs of our early childhood and elementary students is more critical at this time. District leadership and our school board feel that the proposed referendum plan addresses our most critical need — additional space for our younger students — while remaining sensitive to the tax tolerance of our local community.

+ Why can’t the district use the former elementary school in Farming for additional space?

During the planning process, district leadership was intentional in vetting all site and facility options in our community. The former elementary school in Farming would only provide space for approximately eight classrooms — 50% less space than what we need to accommodate our current and projected enrollment. In addition, having an Early Learning Center in Farming — approximately 10 miles away from our main campus, wouldn’t serve our district’s geographical best interest.

+ Will the school own the new site, or will they be renting it from Sand Companies? Has the site already been purchased?

As a local organization in the district, Sand Companies was kind enough to assist our district with securing and negotiating a purchase agreement for the former Albany hospital site and will not be involved in the new site and Early Learning Center if the referendum is approved.

The former Albany site has NOT been purchased. Our district currently has a purchase agreement established for the former hospital building and site but is contingent on the August referendum passing. Upon executing this purchase agreement, the district will own the former hospital building and site and move forward with the new Early Learning Center.

+ Which students would attend the new Early Learning Center?

The current plan is to house all Albany preschool and kindergarten students at the new Early Learning Center, which means Albany students will no longer be bussed to Avon, decreasing the travel time for our youngest learners and decreasing traffic congestion at the Albany campus.

Based on our current space needs, the space at the hospital would allow us to free up much-needed space at Albany Elementary. Avon Elementary will still have a couple of dedicated preschool rooms and retain all kindergartners. However, as our enrollment grows, the additional space at the former hospital would allow us the flexibility to make future changes if needed.

+ Why isn’t the district choosing to build new?

Responsible spending is important to our district, and we don’t take that responsibility lightly. If we were to build a new building on a new site, project costs would equal approximately $26.4 million – almost $10 million more than what we’re currently asking to renovate the former Albany hospital. It’s not in the district’s and community’s best interest to build new.