HOISINGTON — The USD 431 School Board met with community members and an architect and mechanical engineer to discuss options for the aging Lincoln School. It is the oldest school in the district and was built in the 1920s.
Superintendent Bill Lowry said, according to the preliminary numbers, the district does not anticipate raising the mill levy on amounts up to $10 million. He said the district mill levy assessment has gone down 10 mills over the last eight years.
This will be accomplished through bond refinancing and other savings. More information will be available at the school board meeting at 7 p.m. at the USD 431 office on Monday.
If the school board chooses an option, it may be on the ballot in April, 2015, depending upon feedback from the community and planning schedules.
Audience members listened to three options from GMCN Architects and 360 Energy Planners.

Option 1
Option 1 would close Lincoln Elementary School  and Roosevelt would become a pre-K through 4th grade school.  This would include an eight room addition to Roosevelt Elementary. The mobile Classroom, which has been used for 20-30 years, will be eliminated. The estimated cost would be $4,580,730.
The advantages included the consolidation of staff and administration. There would be one less district building to maintain. The land that Lincoln is on could be sold for redevelopment.
The disadvantages include an inadequate playground at Roosevelt. Parking is inadequate, and there is no space or land for future expansion. 5th grade would be left at Hoisington Middle School. The school year would also be disrupted.

Option 2
Including a comprehensive remodel of Lincoln School and additions at Roosevelt School, this option would cost $7,018,650. The advantage to this plan is that it would ease crowding at Hoisington Middle School and would eliminate the Roosevelt Elementary School mobile classroom. It would become a pre-k through 3rd grade school. Lincoln would become a 4-5th grade facility.
Disadvantages include accessibility concerns at Lincoln Elementary, spending a large amount of money remodeling an 88-year-old building, and students would have to be relocated to another school for one year.

Option 3
This option would include a new school at the Lincoln location on the east side of the property. Students could continue to attend school and construction would be blocked off. However, there would be no playground space for one year. The cost would be approximately $9 million.
The price would include asbestos abatement and demolition of the current Lincoln School.
Grade 2-5 would be moved to the new location, easing crowding at Roosevelt and HMS. There would be a vocal music room, art room, science room and media center.
New parking spaces would be added and an indented drop off point for student drop off.
At Roosevelt, the modular classroom would be removed.
Security upgrades would occur at Roosevelt, HMS and HHS as well.
Currently special education services are put into any spare space in the elementary school buildings. With the upgrades, special education services would have their own room.

The audience consisted of members from building site councils, administrators and members of the Strategic Planning Committee. The Strategic Planning Committee met in April of 2013, setting goals for the future of the district.
A couple of audience members wanted the district to build a building on the old practice field next to the Hoisington Activity Center, 1200 Susank Rd.
Audience members were overwhelmingly in favor of Option 3.
“We want input from parents,” said Lowry. “We want to do what is best for students and long term students.”