The Mariemont School Board voted Tuesday to approve a plan that would move students around and change the face of its schools.
A new junior high would be built on the current Fairfax Elementary site. The students at Fairfax would then attend school at Mariemont Elementary.
Mariemont and Terrace Park elementaries would both have a combination of new construction and renovations. They would both retain kindergarten through sixth grades.
Superintendent Paul Imhoff says that instead of putting a "Band Aid" on the aging school buildings, they need to get in there and fix the problems before they become worse. Imhoff wants to fix the heating and plumbing at the schools before the problems take money from other academic programs.
The plan recommends saving the historical parts of some buildings and then reconstructing or doing renovations around those parts. The domed roof at Fairfax Elementary would be saved for a new junior high building. Parts of Mariemont Elementary and Terrace Park would also be saved while construction goes up around them.
The current junior high would be used for other purposes during the construction while the district hopes to take the building out of the budget.
The entire project is expected to cost $37.9 million. A committee will discuss financing options and will report to the board in December.
