On March 11, Hernando School District’s school planner, James Lipsey and Brian Ragan, director of facilities and construction, reviewed the district’s five-year work plan with the Hernando County School Board. They held a roughly 30-minute presentation with the board during Tuesday’s workshop, but no vote was conducted.
According to Lipsey, the tentative plan’s purpose is to “Identify major repair, renovation, and capacity projects needed to maintain the district’s educational and ancillary facilities.”
The plan was split into five categories on Tuesday: Revenues, Expenditures, Project Schedules, Tracking, and Planning. The duo introduced the totals for each category for 2024-2025 budget as well as the projected totals for each of the next 5 years:
Revenues:
2024-2025: $80,431,544 (budget)
2025-2026: $45,322,168 (projected)
2026-2027: $41,104,675 (projected)
2027-2028: $38,490,503 (projected)
2028-2029: $37,038,795 (projected)
5 Year Total: $242,387,685
Expenditures for Maintenance, Repair, Renovation, and Other Needs:
2024-2025: $36,158,312 (budget)
2025-2026: $9,297,885 (projected)
2026-2027: $9,547,885 (projected)
2027-2028: $9,797,885 (projected)
2028-2029: $10,047,885 (projected)
5 Year Total: $74,849,852 (1.5 Mill and PECO)
5 Year Total: $144,848,218 (Local 1.5 Mill)
Projects for School Capacity:
2024-2025: $12,628,484
2025-2026: $48,273,137; Student Stations: 1,190; Classrooms: 53
2026-2027: $38,840,000; Student Stations: 1,304; Classrooms: 56
2027-2028: $45,460,000; Student Stations: 608; Classrooms: 26
2028-2029: $102,500,000; Student Stations: 1,250; Classrooms: 50
5 Year Total: $247,701,621; Student Stations: 4,352; Classrooms: 182
Non-Capacity Projects:
2024-2025: $41,871,678 (budget)
2025-2026: $6,290,000 (projected)
2026-2027: $15,125,000 (projected)
2027-2028: $32,795,000 (projected)
2028-2029: $59,025,000 (projected)
5 Year Total: $155,106,668
Tracking (Capacity):
Eastside Elementary – New Student Capacity: 376; Rooms Added: 18
Moton Elementary – New Student Capacity: 228; Rooms Added: 10
Winding Waters K-8 – New Student Capacity: 352; Rooms Added: 16
Central High – New Student Capacity: 700; Rooms Added: 28
Hernando High – New Student Capacity: 300; Rooms Added: 12
Weeki Wachee High – New Student Capacity: 750; Rooms Added: 30
Planning:
The school board is looking to “maximize permanent capacity” by adjusting school attendance zones, which was originally approved in September 2015. January 2024 saw the board give consensus direction to proceed with Phase 1 of their expansion plan, which increases the classroom count at Eastside Elementary School and adds extra flex classrooms to the Winding Water K-8/Weeki Wachee High complex. Phase 2 will add more dedicated classrooms at Winding Waters K-8 and Central High School, and the board will continue to explore its options when it comes to adjusting the zones regarding capacity.
Considering the explosive growth of Hernando County, Lipsey’s plan confirmed that the county has no plans to close any schools over the next five years. After his presentation, Lipsey confirmed to Superintendent Ray Pinder that the 1.5 mill (for capital investments) referred to in the proposal is completely separate from the millage that was recently passed during last November’s election cycle.
Next up was “the infinity project.” Jokingly referred to as such by School Board Member Susan Duval, the construction of a three-million-dollar Hernando softball stadium on the land that currently serves as the Leopards’ football practice fields is technically scheduled for the 2028-2029 year, but it appears to be unlikely to hit that deadline.
Mr. Ragan had informed the board that, “There is no concrete plan right now […] We just kept it on the list because if it is not on the list, then it never gets done.”
Similar to the stadium, there is also a plan in place for a $500,000 records storage facility, but Mr. Ragan continued that the prices of such a building have increased significantly since the coronavirus pandemic which was when this was being planned. As a result, there will be more money needed and there is no true timetable on when it may be completed.
Further specifics regarding the information-dense categories of non-capacity projects and student station tracking can be found on the Hernando School District website.
