Press release highlights project progress
Celina City Schools Board of Education provided an update on the district’s building project at its Aug. 14, 2023, meeting. The future Celina Elementary School, which will include a new 115,000-square-foot addition to the existing Celina Intermediate School building, is under budget and on schedule. When completed it will serve pre-kindergarten through sixth grade students.
The new building addition of the Celina Elementary School has progressed well since breaking ground in October 2022 with an anticipated completion date of summer of 2024 when partial occupancy will occur. Renovations of the existing Intermediate Building will continue through the fall of 2024. Abatement and demolition of the existing West Building will occur in the spring and summer of 2025, and all remaining site construction will be completed prior to the start of school in 2025.
Preliminary design of the future Celina High School/Middle School began this summer after a series of education visioning sessions with district stakeholders and project partners. It was determined early in the process that inflation and market conditions impacted the High School/Middle School building budget more than the Elementary School project budget.
The project team made up of the district, co-owner Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, architect Garmann Miller and construction manager Peterson Construction, is evaluating cost-saving efforts to help get the building project back on budget. Measures include developing a more-efficient three-story design in lieu of a two-story design, combining the auditorium and student dining spaces together, and evaluating all academic and extra-curricular spaces to ensure that spaces are adequately sized and programmed efficiently.
In the coming months, Garmann Miller will meet with CCS teachers and staff to focus on needs for their respective spaces. This new Celina High School/Middle School building, which will serve grades 7-12, will be located on the existing Celina Primary School and Celina High School campus. Construction is on track to begin in summer 2024 and should be completed in summer 2026. Both the existing Celina Primary School and Celina High School will likely be demolished by the summer of 2026 as construction is completed on the new middle-high building.
CCS is planning to repurpose the existing Middle School building to house the Mercer County Head Start program and the district offices. There also are plans to maintain the gymnasium and student dining spaces for extracurricular and athletic activities. Any renovation work associated with the existing Middle School would likely occur after the completion of the new Celina High School/Middle School building in the summer of 2026.
As part of its overall master plan, Celina City Schools also is evaluating options regarding the district’s athletic facilities. Various options of varsity and practice athletic fields and associated support facilities with projected costs are being developed by Garmann Miller. After the options with cost implications are presented, a decision will need to be made on what option makes the most long-term sense for the district. Community input will be solicited as part of this process.
Celina City Schools will not be asking for any additional money from the community to provide additional funds for the project budget shortage. Although inflation and market conditions have impacted the building project, focused attention is being given by the district and its project partners to explore all options and determine cost-effective solutions that work within the original project budget based on the May 2021 bond issue.
