Bond referendum would fund specific school projects

Voters in the special school bond referendum, scheduled for May 25, will be asked to approve a bond issuance not to exceed $236 million. If approved, the following projects would be pursued over the next few years:

* Aiken High School would get virtually a complete makeover at its current site on Rutland Drive. The School Board agreed to add $500,000 to the estimated $60 million project to provide improvements to the existing "F" wing. The James Taylor gymnasium would be preserved as well.

* North Augusta High School would get a new facility at a site to be determined. At a community input session in January, parents and other residents made it clear that they wanted a new school to counter overcrowding and safety issues. The roughly $80 million project includes $7 million for an athletic field, but the Aiken County Public School District would look at using the existing field, depending on the new school's proximity to the existing campus.

* Leavelle McCampbell Middle School is a historic building that would be preserved, but at more than 80 years old, it is no longer suitable as a school, district administrators have stated. A new $22 million school would be built at a site beside the new Byrd Elementary School. Developer Weldon Wyatt previously donated the property to the district.

* With the urging of parents and community leaders, Ridge Spring-Monetta Elementary/Middle School would move to the site of RS-M High School to create a K-12 campus. The high school would also get improvements.

* Options for Jackson Middle School's status provided the only significant debate among School Board members. They voted 6-2 with one abstention to close both Jackson and New Ellenton middle schools - again, pending a successful referendum - and build a new school beside Silver Bluff High School. Jackson residents wanted their community school mostly rebuilt at a cost of $12 million, half the cost of a new facility.

* The Aiken County Career and Technology Center has seen a substantial enrollment spike in the past two years. The center would get $9 million for facility program additions. Also, RS-M High and Wagener-Salley High School would get $3 million each for career/technology upgrades at their schools. Both are located too far from the Career Center on the Aiken-Augusta Highway for their students to attend.