Building in schools and changes to bulk refuse: What we learned at Waynesboro City Council meeting
WAYNESBORO — Waynesboro City Council had money on the mind throughout their regular meeting on Tuesday, as they received financial updates from the public schools and also wrangled with upcoming changes to the bulk refuse collection ordinance.
Here’s a look at what we learned.
Waynesboro schools don’t have a capacity issue
The council received a presentation from the superintendent of Waynesboro Public Schools Dr. Jeffrey Cassell on Tuesday night for two different but related reasons. A growing concern amongst members of council and one that was voiced by candidates during the recent city council election was about the capacity of local schools in the face of growing residential development within the city. Cassell took on the task of illustrating the current capacity of schools against the schools’ enrollment numbers.
Part of the idea that Cassell put forth was the idea of a “preferred” class size and a maximum class size for the schools.
According to the numbers, Kate Collins Middle School is already at 80 percent of capacity, and Waynesboro High School is at 90 percent.
“We do have capacity in all of our buildings,” Cassell said. He also mentioned that elementary school enrollment could be adjusted by adjusting the attendance boundaries for each school, though the same wouldn’t work for the middle and high schools. Cassell also showed historical enrollment data over the last ten years, which displayed a steady level enrollment around 3,000 students for every year.
Council member Terry Short iterated his belief that between the historical data and data from the surrounding counties, it would take a significant push of residents moving to the Valley to impact Waynesboro’s enrollment numbers.
Current Enrollment/Preferred Capacity/Maximum Capacity
Berkeley Glenn Elementary
254/420/470
Wenonah Elementary
223/378/423
William Perry Elementary
384/730/815
Westwood Hills Elementary
446/504/564
Kate Collins Middle
644/792/900
Waynesboro High
906/1070/1070
Wayne Hills Preschool Center
180/180/200
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Brick-by-brick: Update on Waynesboro school capital projects
Cassell also spoke at length about the capital improvements projects that the school division has been working towards, and those that have already been completed. The total cost of the projects is a bit over $13.8 million across all of the schools in Waynesboro.
“We do have a lot of capital projects going on and are spending a lot of capital improvement dollars,” Cassell said.
Those projects included renovations to multiple schools and facilities, including Waynesboro’s portion of renovations to the Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School and Valley Career and Technical Center, as well as various improvements across the schools. The funds also include upgrades to Waynesboro High School’s athletic facilities, such as new press boxes for the football and softball fields, lights for the softball field, as well as American Disability Act compliance for the softball and baseball fields.
“I believe all of our buildings are in a really great place with capital,” Cassell said, as he was confident that these projects would address most of the issues the schools would face for some period of time.
The funding for these projects has largely already been accounted for:
Total Funding - $12,967,033
State Construction Funds - $1,714,140
Federal Pandemic Funds - $6,646,240
Local Reserve Funds (FY18 - FY21) - $4,157,412
SNAP Funds (Specifically must be used on WHS renovation) - $449,241
However, those funds do not cover the entire $13.1 million projected cost for the projects, which the schools aim to cover with state construction funds, state security grants, or reserves from fiscal year 2022. If they can’t cover it with those funds, they will decide which projects not to undertake.
That isn’t to say that the schools don’t have more projects on the horizon, as the division is planning for phase 2 of the Waynesboro High School renovation, as well as phase 2 for the governor’s school and VCTC facilities. On top of that, the schools would also like to get a second entrance and exit for Wenonah Elementary School, which will be a difficult undertaking and likely to cost a significant sum of money. The schools are also planning for phase 3 of the Waynesboro High School plan, which would be for a new athletic addition with a full-size gymnasium and field house. The schools also need to figure out a new bus parking facility and expanding the maintenance facility.
When Mayor Bobby Henderson asked Cassell about how far out some of the future projects, Cassell mentioned that work at Waynesboro High needs to start as soon as possible, as the proposed section is very outdated and, according to him, not a fit environment for learning.
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New bulk refuse ordinance on the way, pilot program to start in March
At their last meeting on November 14, council tabled an ordinance having to do with bulk refuse, or “knuckleboom,” collection and changes to the program that would do away with free collections in favor of a scheduled system with associated price. The rationale, according to city staff, was that the current system was not an efficient use of the Department of Public Works’ manpower.
“By giving two free collections to all the customers, we are creating demand for a service that we don’t have a resources to sustain or meet,” said city manager Mike Hamp.
At that meeting, the council was unsure about the pricing structure of the ordinance, and asked staff to rethink the ordinance. This time around, the ordinance was introduced with significant changes.
The city will no longer do free collections of bulk pick-up. Now, residents must schedule a pickup with the city or face extra fees.
For customers of the city’s refuse program, a level-one pickup (five cubic yards or less, three bags of bulk debris or less, small furniture) will cost $35. For non-customers or for unscheduled pick-ups, that price is $75.
A level-two pickup (5-12 cubic yards of waste, large furniture, more than three bags of bulk debris) will cost customers $75, and non-customers or unscheduled pick-ups will be charged $115.
Unscheduled pick-ups will also follow a process. The city will notify property owners of an unscheduled refuse pile and give the property owner 14 days to remove it. If not done, they will be charged the unscheduled fee for the removal and an additional administrative fee.
The city will establish a drop-off location for residential grindable yard waste where residents can drop off their refuse for free.
The ordinance is up for consideration at council's next meeting in December. The program is slated to begin in March following further communication with residents from the city and a “catch-up” period for collecting existing bulk refuse. As a pilot program, the city will re-evaluate after 90 days.
—Akhil Ganesh is the Government Reporter at The News Leader. You can contact him at aganesh@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @akhildoesthings.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Waynesboro updates school capacity and construction, changes bulk refuse program
