Springboro land buy for possible new Ohio 741 school moving ahead

Oct. 18—A joint effort that could lead to a new school being built on highly sought after Ohio 741 land in Springboro is entering a new stage.

Springboro's board of education this week is set to consider a business contract to assess its properties. The proposed deal with SHP Architecture will be presented Wednesday night, according to the school district. That's less than a week after Springboro City Council approved bond financing to buy about 60 acres on Easton Farm.

Development of the Easton site has been a hotly debated issue for years, with various proposals dating back to 2008.

City officials said their plans to buy much of the 103-acre site at 605 N. Main St. would give them control of its future.

Springboro officials have said if the city buys the land it is targeting, about 20 acres of it could be involved in a land swap with the school board, which would consider building a school there.

"It will be a very long process," Springboro Superintendent Carrie Hester has said.

The financing approved by the city last week is a significant step in that process. City Manager Chris Pozzuto said Springboro hopes to close on the land by the end of the year, the same time frame the city would like to issue a one-year bond anticipation note, Finance Director Jonathan Hudson said.

"We're going to do one year with the idea that we'll do a longer-term, full bond later," Hudson said.

What interest rate the note will have won't be known until it is issued, he added.

"When we sell the note, it's where the market is that day," similar to a home mortgage interest rate, Hudson said.

Hudson said Springboro has an AA1 bond rating, the second highest grade, according to Moody's.

The school district's proposed agreement with SHP calls for the business to provide professional design services for current facilities and property by May 31, 2025.

The deal would pay SHP $35,000, according to the district.

Springboro schools range in age from a 95-year-old intermediate school to elementary schools built this century, district officials said.

The Easton Farm site was the focus of a 2022 court settlement reached after disagreement between developers and Springboro's city council. The deal allows housing, retail and commercial development on the part of the land closer to Ohio 741, separate from the acreage Springboro is interested in buying.