Riverview School Board received mixed reactions Monday night as they discussed a major renovation project for the junior-senior high school along Hulton Road.
While the project is only in the discussion phase, it could cost from $10.2 million to $10.9 million, not including an 18% contingency fund for unforeseen costs, according to preliminary estimates.
More than 20 members of the public spoke during the meeting.
Debates about cost
“Buildings don’t teach students,” Oakmont resident and former board member Stefani Garibay said. “The lasting effects of experiences and knowledge given by those on the ground in our classrooms far outweigh that of a novelty of a new building.”
District officials have been evaluating the building’s condition, instructional needs, safety and long-term priorities since June 2024 with the help of Pittsburgh-based architecture firm DRAW Collective.
About $2 million in existing money has been set aside in the district’s capital improvement plan for possible use in the project. The district is “considering a possible bond to pay for the remaining costs,” Superintendent Neil English previously told TribLive.
Officials and the public received information from Alisha Reesh Henry, managing director of PNC Capital Markets, regarding the current bond market and the possible implications of issuing a $10 million bond. Bond payments would be about $515,000 for at least the next five years, with a chance to restructure it at that time.
Currently, the district has nearly $19 million in debt projected to be paid off by 2043, Henry said. If the district decides to take the bond issue route, that debt will be projected to be paid off between 2049 and 2050.
Henry cited the Iranian conflict multiple times in regard to future interest rates. As of Monday night, the futures market was pricing in an 85% chance that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates, with a 100% chance of a rate hike by January, Henry said.
“I don’t think anyone could blame me for saying I’m very uncertain about what is going to happen,” Henry said. “The risks are that you wait and this conflict goes on longer and the rate hikes do happen and does it push your project costs higher? Or, do we think some political pressures are going to happen and the Iranian conflict will end and there’ll be a better market? I can’t tell you.”
She urged the board to pursue grants to help with the project.
Board president Antonio Paris also advocated for the board to look into alternative funding, either from corporate sponsors or other resources so costs don’t fall too heavily on taxpayers.
Different fund use suggestions
“When I think about the impact on kids, is this the best use of funds? That’s one of the things I have a conflict about,” said board member Adeshewa Metzger. “Will this have a greater impact on students than, say, additional dedicated librarians? Will this have a greater impact on students than additional counselors?”
Metzger’s point was reiterated by numerous residents during the meeting.
Sophia Gagetta, a Riverview High School student, said she would prefer to see that funding be dedicated to more staff, teachers and larger classrooms in the school. She said she takes three online core classes because Riverview is unable to offer them to her in person.
“I understand that there are nine periods in a day, but seniors who need mandatory classes like personal finance, economics, civics, should not be forced to take the classes online,” Gagetta said.
Any tax increase to start paying for a potential bond issue would be on top of the 1.5% increase the school board proposed May 18 to support additional staffing in elementary STEM and junior-senior high school computer science. The 0.3294-mill proposed real estate tax hike means about a $51 increase on the tax bill of a property owner with a median assessed property value of $155,500.
Sheila Lubert, the district’s director of finance and operations, said that by increasing taxes to the Act 1 Index with the bond issue, the millage rate could increase by 0.8925, equating to about a $139 tax increase for the owner of a median assessed property.
This is the fifth year in a row the district has decided to raise property taxes.
“The phrase I used is death by a thousand paper cuts,” said school board member Kareem Gahed. “That’s basically what that is.”
Project support
Wendy Wilton, an Oakmont resident and former board member, spoke in support of the project during the meeting.
“This project is not a vanity project, and it’s not about keeping up with the Joneses,” she said. “It’s about providing multifunctional educational spaces that can be used in a variety of ways by the students and faculty at the junior-senior high school.”
District officials said the proposal enhances programming for all students, specifically in regard to arts, athletics and extracurricular activities. It’s expected to improve school security and expand counseling, college and career readiness, and student services. It also aims to provide flexible spaces for testing, assemblies and community events.
The district released preliminary design drawings May 20 on its social media pages.
Multiple people in the audience and board president Antonio Paris expressed concern about the designs, including one depicting floor-to-ceiling windows at the school’s entryway.
English said the design is for a lobby area, which will not be utilized or open during school hours.
“It sounds crazy to me that we’re not going to use this space that we’re spending $10 million to make,” Paris said.
English reiterated that all of the designs are in the preliminary stages and are subject to change.
The plan calls for a new assembly and performance space that incorporates between about 19,000 and 21,000 square feet of instructional and student activity space. It would have between 500 and 550 retractable seats. The plan also would provide a dedicated choral, orchestra and music instruction area below the proposed auditorium space.
Julia Brun, a junior at Riverview High School, said she’s in favor of the project. While she acknowledged the costs to property owners, she said the project would directly benefit her and other students.
A member of the school’s chorus program, she said the group is forced to practice in a cramped room with little space to move.
“The space is simply not adequate to fit all of us,” she said.
Sophia Leasure, a sophomore at the high school also in support of the project, said the room is actually the band’s former uniform closet.
With the proposed auditorium, the district would not have to rely on the elementary school auditorium, which would help preserve instructional flexibility for younger students.
The capital project also shows designs for an additional athletic, wrestling and physical education space and a “modernized” vestibule, security and visitor management area. There also would be space for esports, technology and student programming.
The current chorus space would be repurposed to support the golf team.
Multiple members of the community who spoke during the meeting said they recognize the need for the project, but questioned if it was the right time for such a large expense.
“We are at war,” said Oakmont resident Heather Malky. “The current situation is a very difficult financial situation for households.”
In a tentative schedule posted by the district, construction would begin in June 2027.
Paris said that in his opinion, the board recognizes the project is needed but the when and how of the work needs further discussion.
English and Paris said a final budget and any possible tax increases related to the project will be voted on at the June 8 board meeting at 7 p.m. in the Riverview Jr.-Sr. High School library.
Paris said regardless of the vote, the project will continue to be discussed.