Since September of 2020, North Canton Citizens for Safe Schools (NCCFSS) have questioned both North Canton City School Superintendent Jeff Wendorf as well as members of the School Board concerning the District’s choice to construct an early elementary education building (preschool through second grade) at the Charlotte Street property.
The Charlotte site presents a multitude of problems, and chief among them are:
One:
The Charlotte property is grossly undersized given that the Ohio School Design Manual suggests a site size of nearly 20 acres for the 988 students planned for the new elementary school. The Charlotte property is merely 9.6 acres in size.
Two:
The Charlotte site is impacted with industrial contamination that requires extra- ordinary measures to ensure the building constructed on the site is safe for students and staff.
In a November 13, 2020, Repository story titled, “North Canton school site under scrutiny; district says it is safe,” Superintendent Wendorf states that the district would install an enhanced vapor barrier slab and vent system to its building plans and also monitor indoor air quality once the school is built.
Three months after committing to a mitigation system to ensure the building is safe, Superintendent Wendorf has revealed, in an email, that an estimated cost of mitigation at the Charlotte site is nearly $250,000 (see attached email). The following link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0R61Vaatzs describes a product called Terra Shield that apparently is the district’s choice for a mitigation system for the proposed Charlotte school building.
Why is the school district so committed to building at the Charlotte location?
The Charlotte site is undersized per state guidelines and sits atop contaminated groundwater that has come to be known as the “Hoover Plume.”
Further, construction of a new school on the Charlotte property will cost taxpayers nearly $250,000 more than if built elsewhere. That is an estimated cost that could go up.
Has Superintendent Wendorf searched for the cheapest mitigation system?
It appears that a less expensive, passive mitigation system is being proposed as opposed to a more expensive, robust, active mitigation system.
North Canton Citizens for Safe Schools are merely recommending that the school district build their new school at the Northwood Elementary property.
Construction at Northwood would save taxpayers nearly a quarter of a million dollars, and maybe more.
Call your School Board Members as well as members of City Council and Mayor Wilder and urge that the new $25.0 million elementary school be built on a location other than the Charlotte site.
It makes NO sense to spend taxpayer funds on an undersized contaminated property that results in added construction costs.
