When Wright City-area voters go to the polls April 5, they’ll face two ballot questions about funding for the Wright City R-II School District to build a new high school and do several smaller facility projects. One funding issue for $37 million (Prop 1967) would pay for the core project needs of providing student education, while the second, $15 million issue (Prop 2025) would cover ‘extra’ facility features that are part of long-term plans for the new high school.

Cost estimates for several of those extra features were provided to the Wright City R-II School Board last week by project architect Art Bond. They totaled nearly $18 million, forecasting that the school board will have to make some tough funding choices even if they get all the money they’re asking for.

The new high school is slated for construction on land the school district owns south of town between Roelker Road and Highway F. The $37 million, core funding issue will pay for classrooms, offices, library, cafeteria, practice gym and athletic practice fields. The funding will also cover renovation and partial demolition at the old high school, as well as a small expansion of East Elementary.

What that core money won’t cover are accessory facilities that many would associate with a high school, but which are not inherently required for the education and care of students. These mostly consist of competition-level athletic facilities and a few other amenities.

In his report to the school board, Bond said the most expensive of these extra features would be a competition-level gymnasium and a performing arts auditorium, estimated at $6.8 million and $5.6 million, respectively.

Projected costs for other additional facilities were:
• Turf football field and lights — $974,000
• Complete football/athletic stadium — $1.8 million
• Paved parking lot for baseball and softball fields on the east side of the property — $84,000
• Lights for baseball and softball fields — $148,000
• Concession, restroom, and other accessory structures at baseball/softball fields — $537,000.

Adding in a cushion for unexpected costs and inflation brings the cost of that wish list to an estimated $17.8 million, Bond said.
“I don’t think we’re going to be able to afford everything that’s on here, so (the board) will need to prioritize what is the highest ranking down to the lowest,” Bond commented.

Bond said the school board will need to make quick decisions about which features to include in construction, once they know what funding voters have approved.

“We’ll need to have all those fully drawn up so we can get bids. We’re anticipating bidding in October or November of 2022, so we’ll want to get those documents developed,” Bond explained.

The one added feature that wasn’t included in Bond’s presentation is a new roadway that would pass by the north side of the school, connecting Roelker Road and Highway F. Superintendent Chris Berger told The Record that about $700,000 is budgeted in the core project plans to build a partially paved road with limited access, which would be for school use only.

However, Berger also said the school district is in talks with the Wright City government to propose splitting the cost of upgrading that plan to instead build a fully paved and publicly accessible street.

“If the city and school district come to an agreement, the road would be improved to city specifications and be a full access road that could be used by anybody,” Berger said. “A road designed to city spec is projected to at least double the cost.”