Few turn out for RC school informational session

By Danielle Strenke
Only a few residents came out on a Saturday morning to hear about plans for the proposed addition and renovation projects at Jacobson Elementary, and roof replacement at Rush City High School.
The Rush City School Board held the informational meeting Saturday, April 20, as an informal way to communicate information about the projects to residents, with nine days left before they are asked to vote on both issues in a referendum.
With the exception of board members, building committee members, architects and financial planners working on the project, the audience of district residents was small.
Architects from the firm RJM explained details of the proposed addition and renovation at the elementary school.
The new wing would connect on the west side of the existing building, and house classes for grades two through six. Kindergarten classes would remain in the 1988 addition of the school, while first grade would be housed in the original 1963 round portion of the facility.
ìHow many students is it designed for?î an audience member asked.
Architects told him it would accommodate 650 students, which is more than 125 additional students over the current population.
One man in the audience asked how the school was set up now. ìAs a newcomer to the district, it would have been nice to see the layout now in the round building,î he said. ìI canít see how it would all fit in there.î
The current round building, which houses all of the classrooms except kindergarten, school office, and cafeteria, would be remodeled to include bigger classrooms for all the first grade classes, a media center, computer lab, Title 1 classroom, and the cafeteria.
With the new addition, the concern of parking and student safety before and after school would be lessened with a new main entrance to the west, off the new addition.
A large visitors parking lot would be added, with a circular bus entrance off of Tiger Trail, which runs between the elementary school and the high school. Architects said it was also a nice way to connect the two schools in a better campus environment.
ìHow much has enrollment increased since the original building?î an audience member asked.
School Board member Mark Moulton told him that the school had 413 students in 1967, saw a drop-off in the 1970ís, but has seen steady growth in the past two decades. ìThings are changing hereñIím one of the last farmers. The whole county is growing, and becoming more suburban,î he said.
A district bus driver in the audience said he was concerned with the bus entrance and congestion with visitor traffic. ìThere doesnít seem to be enough room,î he said.
Architects told the audience that the drawing was a conceptual plan only, and if the project is approved by voters, civil engineers will work to correct any design problems.
Superintendent Tim Eklund talked briefly about the roofing and drainage projects at the high school.
ìThereís not a lot to add about the roofñI could talk for hours, believe me,î he said. He referred to the informational newsletter mailed out to voters, and handed out at the meeting. ìPage five gets to the crux of the matter. Even if you donít vote yes, this will happen because the board needs to protect this investment.î
ìI live in this district, and I pay taxes. Iím going to vote yes because I want to pay less. This isnít necessarily something anyone is happy about or proud of,î he said.
The roof has had leakage problems for years, and damage from a hail storm last year only added to the problem. A bid on the roofing project was awarded to Ebert Construction by the board at a special meeting April 19.
Additional costs will be incurred for installing a sufficient drainage system at the high school. ìThere wonít be gallons of water streaming off the roof, or huge ice sheets coming down,î Eklund said. ìThe whole property will be dry.î
A second informational meeting for district voters was held Tuesday, with the referendum vote being held Monday, April 29.

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