With enrollment increasing each year, the Wright City R-II School District is discussing a facility expansion earlier than once anticipated.During its monthly meeting Aug. 22, the district board of education discussed the time line of building a new high school and made the decision to begin examining a project in the spring of 2020.Joe Kinder, from financial adviser George K. Baum & Company, was on hand to discuss financial options for the district. With the property tax base of the district having steadily increased due to new construction of homes and businesses, officials identified 2023 as an opportune time for the district to take a tax increase proposal for a new high school to the public.“A district cannot borrow more than 15 percent of its assessed valuation,” said Superintendent Dr. David Buck. “The last three years we have had a lot of new homes and businesses. Our assessed valuation has increased quite a bit as a result of that.”In 2010 the district acquired 85 acres on the south side of Wright City between Highway F and Roelker Road. At that time a preliminary plan for what the new high school might look like was rendered, but Buck said there is a lot than can vary.“Originally we asked the architect to draw up a mock of what it would look like when the land was bought,” said Buck. “There’s things in it that we probably wouldn’t have, such as a natatorium (swimming pool building) or tennis courts. Those would be decisions we would have to make.”Buck said it can be difficult to gauge cost based upon new high school completions by other schools, as enrollment sizes and locations are so different. For instance, if the high school athletic facilities had to be relocated along with the new school, the district would incur additional costs.“We’re going to try to gauge and get a sense of costs,” said Buck. “It really all depends on how land lays and how much dirt work you have to do. We also have to consider how much to put into common spaces, since high schools now look a lot different than conventional schools back in the day.”The district would also have to consider whether to build the campus directly off Highway F or Roelker Road, depending on a number of factors, including land work and accessibility.Another area of discussion was the need for expansion at East Elementary, which has also experienced growth. The building is now in its 11th year and was built to allow for an expansion wing. The district plans to continue exploring options for how to meet this growth with its current resources in the immediate future.Wright City School District logo