BY DANA DiFILIPPO
The Cincinnati Enquirer
More than $450 million in renovations to Cincinnati Public Schools will be recommended today when a long-awaited facilities plan is released.
For those who want change, the plan promises plenty. It recommends that 19 schools be closed, 14 rebuilt and all others undergo overhauls.
School officials unveil the plan after 18 months of studying 8 million square feet of decaying buildings in the Tristate's largest and, by many standards, poorest school district.
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AT A GLANCE
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The facilities master plan released today will call for closure of 19 schools, although 14 would be rebuilt. The problems at a glance:
While the district spends $8 million a year to maintain its buildings, the deterioration of the buildings has far outpaced its ability to make fixes.
As a result, some problems have just gotten worse with neglect. Some buildings have roofs that are decades old and springing leaks that damage interior walls and floors. Windows in many buildings either won't open or are stuck open.
The buildings are old -- the average age is 53 years and the oldest was built in 1877. About 20 schools were built before electricity was widely used in buildings, posing unique problems for a district now trying to wire its facilities for computers.
List of school closures
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The district is counting on a one-time infusion of city and county tax revenues to help pay for improvements to the buildings where 48,500 children spend nine months of the year. Improvements would take place in the next five to 10 years.
Cincinnati and Hamilton County have pledged $200 million over 20 years. Part of that money will come from revenues generated in a voter-approved stadium-funding deal.
Some details of the plan have trickled out through closed community meetings, causing many students, parents and teachers to speculate about their own schools. Those who know the schools well already have an idea what the plan may say.
Rachel Washington does not need to see the plan.
The Withrow High School sophomore already knows how badly her school needs help. The Hyde Park school's closed natatorium has become a giant storage bin, leaks have left plaster crumbling throughout the school, and countless windows won't open -- while others are stuck open. Those problems were among $15 million in needed repairs identified at Withrow five years ago.
"Withrow is a good school. We work hard -- we deserve better," said Rachel, 17, of Bond Hill.
Such is the sentiment of students throughout the district, where buildings are similarly afflicted.
The problem now becomes where to get the rest of the money to fix the problems.
"If you only have a dollar to throw at a problem, where do you throw it?" said Russell Welty, a retired district plant operator who now does special projects for the facilities department.
This isn't the first time district residents have heard estimates to fix their schools.
In 1993, a district-commissioned study by Turner Construction Co. said it would take $600 million to repair all the schools' problems. Thinking that was too high a bill for taxpayers, the district placed a plan for $348 million in repairs before voters.
It lost by 20,000 votes.
In 1995, Hamilton County and Cincinnati each pledged $5 million a year for 20 years. The money would come from revenues from the city's new stadiums.
While county leaders agreed on a plan to honor their promise, city leaders are still debating how to do it. At issue is whether to use some of the city's entertainment tax.
Meanwhile, decay grows.
While some problems identified in 1993 have been fixed, others have had five more years to worsen.
Lack of money has kept the district in triage -- fixing the biggest ills and leaving the others to suffer even more from inattention.
"The school district has been putting all of its emphasis on improving the achievement of children, and in a way, that's where the emphasis should be," said Diane Sakmyster, who oversees facilities as director of school services.
"But maintenance and building repair have gone wanting. You can do that for awhile, but it's time now for us to go back and pick this up."
The district now spends about $8 million a year on maintenance and repairs.
Despite that, visitors to any school building see decay. Dilapidated lockers, leaking pipes, broken and battered windows, cracked concrete and potholed parking areas abound.
But at many schools, it's the things that aren't obvious that pose the biggest and costliest problems.
Decades-old roofs and windows have led to leaks that sprout more damage -- water-ravaged walls and floors and peeling paint.
Many schools are in dire need of window replacements -- for waterproofing and temperature control. The mortar, plaster and cement on many buildings are so old they crumble easily.
Most schools -- including Rothenberg, McKinley, Hyde Park, Washburn and Fairview -- aren't accessible to people with disabilities, forcing the district to route many disabled students from their neighborhoods.
And the district's older, more ornate buildings have proven enormously expensive to maintain. About 20 schools were built before electricity was widely used, posing unique problems for a district now trying to wire its facilities for computers.
The district's average building is 53 years old. The oldest, McKinley in Columbia Tusculum, was built in 1877.
Cincinnati Fire Division investigators released a 147-page report in January 1997 noting more than 2,500 safety violations in district schools, ranging from improperly stored combustibles and exposed wiring to broken doors and windows and poor ventilation.
One of district's most unique attractions is its School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) in Over-the-Rhine. There is no other school like it in the Tristate.
But even SCPA is beset with problems -- crumbling plaster, drafty old windows and frequent plumbing failures.
"We've got kids from 20 different countries, all three states in the Tristate and all corners of the city -- some paying up to $6,700 in tuition to go here, and these are the best facilities we can offer them?" asked Jeffrey Brokamp, SCPA principal.
