Riverside seeks voter approval of bond issue to construct new grades 6-12 facility –

Riverside School District voters in the May 3 primary will decide on a $147.7 million bond issue to construct new school buildings and restore old ones.

If passed, the bond levy would last 37 years and cost taxpayers $187.95 annually per $100,000 in property valuation.

The money would allow the district to construct a new complex for sixth through 12th grades. It would include a middle school and high school with shared spaces, on the current Riverside campus property.

Nick Carrabine, marketing and communications director for Riverside, says that a vast amount of research has gone into this plan.

“Multiple studies were done on the land to make sure construction of a new facility would be possible,” Carrabine said. “The findings of all those studies made it clear there were no significant issues or concerns that would prevent us from building on the property.”

The district’s facilities were assessed by the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission in 2008 and 2013, who decided that their facilities should be replaced due to poor conditions. LaMuth Middle School was the only exception to the commission’s decision

In November of 2016, the Riverside community passed a 1.92-mill bond levy that raised $38.5 million to close the aging Hadden, Hale, Leroy and Madison Avenue elementary schools and build two new elementary schools in their place.

Hadden, Hale and Leroy elementary properties were then sold for a combined $660,000. Madison Avenue was demolished and replaced by Riverview Elementary and Parkside Elementary in Concord Township in September 2016.

Carrabine says the new campus is to be designed with enhanced safety and security, flexible spaces and environments which would allow a more inclusive learning environment, and spaces for fine arts and sciences, additional educational and curricular offerings for students to help them for the prepare for college.

“We believe a strong public school system benefits the entire community,” he said. “High quality schools build a stronger sense of community, improve home values, attract new families and businesses, and most importantly, develop and educate the youth to prepare them for a successful future.

“It is our hope that we can have facilities that: are educationally competitive, are technologically up to date, provide for collaborative teaching and learning methods, have competitive STEM learning centers and are safe and functionally sound.”

The proposed bond levy has been the result of eight years of work by the District Facilities Committee. The committee is a collection of community members, parents, board members, administrators and Riverside staff who wanted to help the repair the failing conditions of the schools.

Should the bond levy be approved the campus is estimated to be ready to open to staff and students by August of 2026.

Should the levy be voted down Carrabine says they will continue on to the best of their ability with the resources they currently have.

“Our goal is to provide the community with as much information as we can,” Carrabine said. “It is then up to the voters to decide whether or not we go through with the project.”