Mars school board bond closing next week
ADAMS TWP — Mars Area School Board briefly discussed a bond issue that is closing next week during a meeting Tuesday, Nov. 12. The bond will make up part of overall funding for the district’s elementary school renovation.
The district still is in the design phase of the addition to the elementary school. The estimated cost is roughly $23 million, according to board secretary Debbie Brandsetter.
“We’ve broken up the money into two bonds,” she said. “We’re going to do two bond issues. We did one now, 2024, and that’s getting closed next week. It’s $10 million. We’ll do another one in 2025, for $10 million. Those proceeds are going to go toward the construction of that building.”
At the district’s work session meeting Nov. 6, the board received a presentation from DRAW Collective, an architectural firm, on parts of the overall design of the elementary school project.
A big part of the presentation surrounded potentially adding new “flexible learning spaces” in the three-story classroom wing that will be included in the addition. But the best use of the available space is still being contemplated by the board.
“It’s not the main focus. And that’s actually one of the things that we’re meeting about tomorrow,” superintendent Mark Gross said. “Because we realized, some of what was presented, we’re interested in, but maybe there’s better use for some of those areas. So we’re trying to find that sweet spot. It’s not so much of a focus, it’s more of an architectural design question. They get in there, they say they can do this, this and the other, and then it gets fine-tuned.”
