Baldwin School Board passes $60 million construction plan

Baldwin School Board passes $60 million construction plan

The Baldwin County Board of Education has passed the $60 million financing plan it earlier outlined that would make way for two new schools and the construction of additions on five other campuses.
The plan does not require any new taxes, and would be paid for in four years with an interest rate that is around two percent – in what’s described as a “pay-as-you-go” capital construction program.
One of the new schools is a K-6 elementary school in Foley estimated to cost $15.55 million with a capacity for 1,200 children. A middle school addition to Orange Beach Elementary will be for
7th & 8th grade students and include a gym, a cafetorium and major renovations at a cost of $6.34 million. A new larger gymnasium and 12 new classrooms are in the plan for Gulf Shores Elementary School at a cost of $3.8 million. The largest line item in the plan is a $15.4 million elementary school on the Eastern Shore that will have a capacity for 1,200 students. A $9.35 million elementary school expansion in Bay Minette includes a 35 classrooms and a new cafetorium, media center and administration room.
The current K-6 school in Fairhope will add 14 classrooms and a new gymnasium. The $4 million planned expenditure also includes $150,00 for demolition of the city’s old middle school.
Daphne Middle School was allotted $2.75 million in the plan for 14 additional rooms and additional parking. The debt service on the plan will be paid for with a 1 percent sales tax that was set to expire in 2018, before the Baldwin County Commission stepped in to make the tax permanent. Ribbon cuttings for additions at Elberta Elementary, Elsanor and Central Baldwin Middle School are scheduled on Aug. 14. “It seems like it was just yesterday that we were breaking ground.,’’ said Eddie Tyler, Baldwin Schools Superintendent.