A refresh of building interiors, plumbing and HVAC repairs, landscaping and ADA compliance are only a few out of the many items on Greensburg Salem School District’s laundry list of potential construction projects.

The list, divided up by school building and urgency, was presented to the public at a facilities meeting this week.

Superintendent Ken Bissell said the district hopes to gather a steering committee to provide perspectives and guidance to the school board’s facility and finance committee on future construction projects.

The committee would give input into decisions the district makes on facilities upgrades, though the board would have the final say, he explained.

“We are looking for residents, teachers, business leaders … What we really hope for is to find different community groups,” Bissell said. “We want a lot of stakeholders.”

People interested in participating are encouraged to reach out to Kayla Tamer, associate to the district superintendent and coordinator of community outreach. A survey distributed by QR code after the meeting asked attendees to note if they were interested in the committee, and to provide their own opinions on priorities for repairs at the district.

List of priorities

In 2023, the district’s architectural and engineering adviser, Civil & Environmental Consultants, cited an estimated cost of $91.2 million for a potential wish list of building projects over 10 years.

The tasks discussed at the facilities meeting inhabited the first two, most immediate categories of potential projects from that list, Bissell explained.

Even maintenance repairs for one building could carry a high price tag. According to the 2023 report, “immediate” upgrades for the high school alone, which include fixing exterior damaged handrails, repairing signs and broken wood steps and replacing exterior door hardware and sealant joints, were projected to cost upwards of $515,000.

Other “year 1” level projects for the high school, which include bringing restrooms and parking into ADA compliance and upgrading the building’s interior paint, flooring, doors and ceilings, could add on more than $23 million.

The advisory committee would help the district navigate priorities for these projects. At an overarching level, Bissell is focused on three areas: safety and security, accessibility and pride and community engagement.

Highlighting both physical and perceived safety at the district is a must, he said.

“When we look at our buildings, they are pre-Columbine. It’s a real thing, unfortunately,” he said. “It’s a reality, and we have to confront that.”

The district hopes to update security technology, as well as general tech accessibility in its buildings, many of which date from before cell phones and the Internet became essential parts of daily life.

ADA compliance also is a major priority — many parts of the district’s buildings and athletic fields, including Bissell’s own office door, are not fully accessible, he said.

During the presentation, Bissell read a list of comments and critiques he’d heard from students about the state of district buildings, ranging from tongue-in-cheek complaints to expressions of genuine frustration.

“I want to make sure we give our kids a sense of pride in what they have,” he said of his goals for the repairs. “It’s not going to be the Taj Mahal, but to be prideful in Greensburg Salem … I think we’re all committed to doing that.”

Declines and downsizing

At the meeting, Bissell went over the status of the district’s buildings and discussed predicted enrollment levels moving forward at Greensburg Salem. Enrollment has consistently declined over the past 20 years, and is projected to fall further.

“We want to be fiscally responsible in what we’re doing,” Bissell said at the meeting. “That word downsizing kind of came to my mind as I looked through these figures.”

According to the presentation, 2,558 students are enrolled in 2024, as compared to around 3,400 in 2004. By the 2032-2033 school year, 2,233 students are predicted to be enrolled.

“That’s essentially a grade level and a half that won’t be walking our halls that are currently walking our halls,” Bissell said of the projected decrease of 325 children.

Kindergarten numbers this year were far below predictions. Instead of a projected 224 children enrolled, 171 children were signed up, Bissell said, “way under” what was expected. He noted that registrations for kindergarten can sometimes fluctuate.

“Where we’re predicted to be in kindergarten enrollments in 2032-2033 is 175, which is about that class size we are seeing now,” Bissell said. “The question is, are we already there at those low numbers? We don’t really know that — that’s something we need to dig into a little bit more and check those figures.”

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