JAY — Jay Elementary School could see significant changes in the coming years.
On Friday, Principal Kelly Allen-Short posted a message on the school’s Facebook page that stated, “There has been a growing concern regarding the age and condition of some of our buildings as well as the layout of our school. The district is committed to finalizing documentation with the Department of Education for removing and consolidating older buildings in hopes of rebuilding structures to meet our school needs.”
The oldest building on campus was built in 1926; other portions of the campus were built in 1955 and 1974, according to a school official. Joey Harrell, assistant superintendent of Administrative Services, said several buildings are undergoing evaluation.
“Once that final analysis has been complete, then I will know if the Department of Education concurs with our findings that will lead us to those next steps … ‘Do we go ahead and tear that building down or do we try to rehabilitate that building,’” Harrell said, adding public opinion is appreciated, however the decision would come down to a school board vote.
For now, Allen-Short and Harrell said, the school is safe and up to code for student and teacher use, but it’s necessary to plan for the future.
The oldest building at the campus was built in 1926, other portions of the campus were built in 1955 and 1974 according to Autumn Wright, the school’s assistant principal.
“This will be a long, inconvenient process which will include the use of portable buildings and classroom consolidations,” Allen-Short stated on Facebook.
One issue is preserving the historical building.
“People do have a love for a (historical) building and we understand that,” Harrell said. “We also have to look at the best interest of the children, the taxpayer dollars we are entrusted with (and) all of those have to come into the decision-making process.”
Some repairs already have been made. The school district has added new carpet and addressed outside pests.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Jay Elementary campus evaluated for safety