Security, lab upgrades high on GCSC facilities master plan

Among the recommendations brought forth in the Greencastle Community Schools facilities master plan presnted Monday were a connection between Greencastle High School and McAnally Center, upgrades to the GHS media center, changes to Harbison Stadium and the move of baseball and softball diamonds to the property of the transportation center.

Courtesy krM Architecture

Among the many lessons learned in a pandemic is the fact that science moves forward almost hourly.

It should be no surprise, then, that laboratories completed decades ago may not fully meeting the needs of today’s high school and middle school students.

Upgrades to the labs at Greencastle High School and Greencastle Middle School are among the highest-priority items on a facilities master plan presented to the Greencastle School Board this week following a four-month study by krM Architects.

Chief on the list, though, are security upgrades to the entrances of four of the five school buildings in the corporation.

Such security and lab upgrades represent only the top six items on a prioritized list of 78 recommended upgrades to the various corporation structures, including McAnally Center, Harbison Stadium and other athletic facilities.

All told, fixing every item on the list would require an estimated investment of $48.8 million, though it’s not something school officials plan to undertake all at once.

Instead, they plan to keep the situation tax neutral by simply replacing debt that the corporation pays off to undertake new projects.

“Just to be clear (about) our debt service fund: We will have some debt that will be falling off,” Supt. Jeff Gibboney said. “We will need to be replacing that debt with new debt that will fund these projects through the form of a bond sale.”

Gibboney later clarified to the Banner Graphic that the district would not simply replace the debt just because.

“We’re not just replacing it just to replace it,” Gibboney said. “We’re doing it because these facilities need to be upgraded and that money is not available in our operations fund.”

What upgrades are prioritized will continue to be discussed over the course of 2021, with no construction likely until sometime next year.

All the same, the findings by krM are an intriguing look at what GCSC facilities could look like two, five and 10 years down the line.

With concerns over school safety heightened in recent years, it should be no surprise that security issues led the list krM presented. Upgrading and securing the entrances of Greencastle Middle School, Tzouanakis Intermediate, Deer Meadow Primary and Ridpath Primary are the top five items on the list, respectively, with the upgrades coming in at an estimated cost of $1.268 million.

Entry to Greencastle High School already requires visitors go through the office and is therefore not at the top of the list like the other four school buildings.

However, another safety recommendation does involve the high school — construction an indoor connection between GHS and McAnally Center. Such an upgrade would provide students a passage to the building that houses the school corporation’s main gymnasium, pool and auditorium.

“We obviously have a duty to make sure that we offer safe facilities,” Gibboney said, “certainly facilities that offer a good environment for teaching and learning to take place.”

The science lab upgrades come next on the list, estimated at $2.212 million for the high school labs and $1.348 million at the middle school.

Another possible big project would be a $2.106 million upgrade to the high school media center, with Kevin Montgomery of krM noting the lack of natural light in the facility as well as the changing demands on media centers in the years since the school’s last major renovation.

While a number of less obvious upgrades to classrooms, corridors, bathrooms and general maintenance are also suggested, perhaps the most noticeable recommended upgrades to outside observers involve athletic facilities.

These begin with the proposed walkway between GHS and McAnally. Along with the walkway is the possibility of a second auxiliary gym in the space currently between the two buildings, adjacent to the current auxiliary gym.

Another related recommendation is a wrestling room and weight room in the basement of the new area.

Montgomery noted that not only would such an upgrade provide new athletic facilities, but also increase instructional area for physical education in particular, as well as additional gym space so athletes are not having to practice as late into the evening.

With the move of the weight and wrestling rooms, such expanded facilities would also free up other space for additional locker rooms. Built in the late 1960s, before girls’ varsity sports existed in Indiana, McAnally has long been lacking in adequate locker space.

In tandem with recommending the connection between the buildings, krM also suggested the possibility of moving the GHS baseball and softball fields.

While some of the other upgrades would limit access to the two diamonds, accessibility is already a problem.

“Right now, accessibility is really difficult for parents and especially grandparents attending baseball and softball games because there is no parking nearby,” Gibboney said.

The recommendation is to relocate the fields to the southeast corner of the GCSC Transportation Center property between Veterans Memorial Highway and Martinsville Street.

Such a move would also free up some real estate on the landlocked campus that houses the high school, middle school and McAnally.

Other related projects include a new maintenance road to be built from the Washington Street side of the property, a new track surface at Harbison Stadium, a new stadium entrance and even the possibility of artificial turf at the stadium.

Of course, these athletic upgrades are large projects, with price tags totalling in excess of $10 million. At this time, it remains unclear exactly when such things could or would be undertaken.

Gibboney emphasized that the entire process is extensive and would continue to be discussed.

“It’s not reasonable to expect that we’re going to get all of that list accomplished at once,” Gibboney said before jokingly suggesting someone might donate the funds.

For example, Montgomery noted that a number of items and systems at Tzouanakis are nearing the end of their working life, but these upgrades can wait until the 5-10-year range.

“I think it’s reasonable to expect that there is a large chunk, potentially, that we’re going to be able to complete,” Gibboney said.

A cost distribution displays how costs would break down for the top 30 items on the Greencastle Schools facilities master plan, as well as the same information for all 76 items.

Courtesy krM Architecture

To this point, krM also provided a breakdown of how the money would be spent, not only on the entire list of upgrades but, more realistically, on the top 30 items.

Among these items, 34 percent would go to academics, 31 percent to athletics, 26 percent to safety and nine percent to maintenance.

The price tag for the top 30 items on the list comes in at just shy of $30.5 million.

For now, the job of administrators, school board members and other stakeholders is to continue reviewing the list, assessing needs and, importantly, being stewards of tax money.

“I think it’s important to say that we won’t enter into any plan that would require an increase in property tax rates,” Board President Mike White said. “It’s going to be stable.”

While discussions are likely to be ongoing throughout 2021, the next major step toward any upgrades is likely to be the sale of bonds later this year.

“We will need to continue to work together to move this process forward, to move forward to determine, at a future meeting, what type of scope or how large of a project we wish to continue,” Gibboney said.