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October 2014
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Beachwood Buzz
35
YOU
and
YOUR
Adminstration Recommends Elementary School Consolidation
Dear Fellow Beachwood Community Member:
In January, your Board of Education outlined key objectives for the 2014 calendar year. The goals were commu-
nicated to the public by way of email and publication in the February edition of the Beachwood Buzz, as well
as on our website and Facebook page. At the top of the list were two items dealing with the condition of our
elementary schools and our athletic facilities ­ specifically, both are in need, or will be in need of major repairs
and require a significant investment from our community. While these issues topped the list in 2014, they have
long been on the radar of the Board and Administration and, accordingly, have been monitored, discussed and
studied in recent years.
After a thorough analysis, at the Sept. 8 Board Meeting, Superintendent Richard Markwardt, Treasurer Mi-
chele Mills and Assistant Superintendent Robert Hardis presented the Administration's recommendations to
the Board. Specifically, the Administration is recommending that Hilltop, Bryden, and Fairmount schools be
consolidated and that the Board seek a capital bond to fund an addition at the Fairmount School to house a
pre-kindergarten through 5th grade program. With relation to the Bryden property, the Administration is rec-
ommending the land be sold for purposes of residential development, which will hopefully attract and retain
families to our community, as well as provide additional property tax revenue for the Schools and community.
Although any project will need to be funded via a capital bond, this tax revenue and operational savings would
positively impact our operating levy cycle in the future.
For the athletic facilities, the Administration is recommending improvements and/or replacement of our
football field, soccer field and track. Additionally, the Administration is recommending that the Hilltop buildng
be razed and that property be utilized to add practice fields and additional recreational space for our students
and community. These improvements would necessarily be done in two phases, with the latter phase including
improvements to our baseball fields, football stadium seating, and the indoor pool.
The recommendation of the Administration is a comprehensive plan that is not driven by any singular com-
ponent, but rather, the result of the Board's charge to the Administration to address the elementary and
athletic facilities. It is important to note, however, that at this point, it is just a recommendation. It is now up
to the Board to evaluate and study the recommendation. Over the coming months, there will be focus groups
with community stakeholders. Once the configuration of the proposed addition is developed further, and the
feasibility of and the expenses associated with the athletics facilities are further investigated, the Board will be
in a position to more accurately analyze the recommendation and at that time will vote on whether to move
forward.
As always, we will keep you informed as we navigate this process. A copy of last week's presentation to the
Board may be viewed on our website. We encourage you to view it in its entirety. We also encourage you to
attend our Board meetings which take place the second and fourth Monday of each month.
Thank you for your support,
Mitchel Luxenburg, President
Beachwood Board of Education