Paytner plans could include student relocation

Paynter Elementary students in the Baldwin-Whitehall School District could be relocated while a new, larger school is constructed in place of the aging 50-year-old building.

Superintendent Randal Lutz sent a letter to Paynter parents on Oct. 5 outlining the status of a project to build a new 48-classroom, $48 million school. The letter followed approval from school board members on Oct. 2 authorizing the superintendent to continue exploring the building of a new school on the current school site, which would include the relation of students to another site during construction.

“It’s something that we continue to work on. We continue to explore all options,” Superintendent Randal Lutz told the Trib. “We only have one opportunity to do this, in my lifetime and in the foreseeable future. We’ve got one chance and we have to get it right. We owe it to our taxpayers, we owe it to our children and we owe it to our future generations of kids to get this school right.

“We’re going to explore every option. There may be some temporary inconveniences, but we’re really looking at the long term benefit for the community and the district as a whole,” Lutz said.

District leaders have said there is a need for a new building, as the district’s student population grows, particularly at the lower grade levels. Paynter, which was built in 1969, has a failing roof and its mechanical systems, boilers, HVAC and electrical all have reached the end of their useful life.

In his letter to parents, Lutz said the district looked at two options: Building the school on the parking lot and fields behind the current Paynter building or constructing it in place of the current school.

The parking lot and fields have “challenges related to topography and stability of the land,” Lutz wrote.

Building on the current school site would require the relocation of students while it is constructed. This is what board members gave the OK to continue pursuing.

Other sites in the district were looked at, but determined to be unrealistic, he wrote, given that the school will need to hold 1,000 students.

In his letter, Lutz said he and his team have been “exploring locations suitable for our children.”

Baldwin High School has an additional capacity of about 500 students, Lutz wrote, while St. Sylvester’s catholic school, which closed this summer, has space for about 350 students.

“Both sites provide for fantastic opportunities for our children, but come with some obstacles that we must plan for,” Lutz wrote.

The superintendent told the Trib this week that district leaders still are considering these options and weighing all possibilities.