In August of 2009, the Ohio Schools Facility Commission offered to fund 41% of a building project for Northeastern as a result of a study conducted of the district’s schools. The OSFC has provided funding for other area districts — Springfield City Schools and Tecumseh Local Schools among them — for new building projects within the last decade. The OSFC helps school districts fund, plan, design, build, and renovate schools, and it provides opportunities to districts throughout the state to do this.
Northeastern created plans for their new buildings and launched a massive campaign last fall for an election on November 3 in their first levy attempt, which was voted down by slightly under 1,000 votes. The district put another levy up last February — a combined property/income tax levy of 7.572 mills and a .25% — which was voted down by approximately 1,250 votes.

“Some in the community voiced concerns about their level of income and [ability] to pay the [proposed taxes],” district spokesperson Linda Wallace said in an interview with The Springfield Paper in February. “We’ve made the levies as small as we can.”

And, for next Tuesday’s special election, the proposed taxes have been made smaller. Gone is any income tax for the levy, and all that remains is a proposed 7.876 mills property tax, which would cost the owner of a $100,000 property $241.20 annually.

To do this, the district has modified their proposed construction plans. The original plans called for all new buildings to be built on two separate campuses — one elementary, middle, and high school per campus — to be built with the same division lines currently used to separate the district’s two high schools, Kenton Ridge and Northeastern. Instead, the districts’ new plans have done away with the idea of building all on the same campus.

Two new elementary schools would still be constructed, but both would remain in the same area as the current Northridge and South Vienna elementary schools. Kenton Ridge High School, which was originally slated to be torn down, will now be renovated and serve as the home of the new Northridge Middle School. A new high school will be built on next to the old building on the same site to serve as the new home for Kenton Ridge. The plans also call for a new middle school and a new high school to built on the current site of Northeastern High School.

The district is hoping that the modified plans will sway voters into approving new buildings, which, according to the NELSD, can only improve the standard and quality education that is currently provided.

Further voting information is available with the Northeastern Local School District’s board office and with the Clark County Board of Elections. The Springfield Paper will provide continuing coverage of the levy, and will publish the election results in the Wednesday, August 11 edition.