Edison Board of Education votes on constructing new pre-K to 5th grade building, renovating high school

MILAN – The Edison Local Schools Board of Education unanimously voted to approve a plan to build a new preschool to 5th grade building and renovate Edison High School to added 6th to 8th grade.

The new preschool to 5th grade building will be built in Berlins Heights. The high school, which is located in Milan, will receive an expansion to accommodate the three new grades.

According to the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, which presented four plans to the board in July 2021, this plan will cost $75.8 million. $55.6 million will be paid for locally by the district, while the other $22.2 million will be picked up by the State of Ohio.

The location of the buildings have caused controversy among the district. The controversy was mainly caused by the location of the school buildings.

Following the vote, one Edison parent wrote on Facebook, “Our school district has a once in a lifetime chance to centralize the location of the schools within our district and make the overall experience for parents and children in the district more pleasant. However, yet again, our school board members have demonstrated that their concern for parents and children of the community are the least of their concern.”

The current elementary school in Milan was built in 1922 and is 100 years old. The middle school in Berlin Heights was built in 1890 and is 132 years old, though multiple additions have been made. The district’s newest building is the high school and which was built in 1971, making it 51 years old.