New Fairborn High School to include $3M indoor multi-sport facility

It was one of the projects that was cut earlier due to price increases for the new high school under construction on Commerce Center Boulevard, officials said.

Plans for the facility were reinstated last week after a vote by the Fairborn school board. It will be among several projects that will be funded by the 34-year bond issue district voters approved this spring, officials said.

Other projects to be built with the bond issue funds will be baseball and softball fields, tennis courts and turf band practice fields, according to the district.

The indoor facility “will give us an adequate-sized weight room for our athletes and our students,” Philo said. “The other area will allow us indoor practice for different athletic groups … cheerleaders, band, etc., it will give them a place where they can practice during the winter or inclement weather.”

School district officials said last spring’s tax issue would generate about $24.6 million, but would not increase existing millage rates. The district has arranged for the tax to only begin collection in 2027 after a current 2-mill bond issue expires the year prior, Philo has said.

The new high school — once estimated to cost $70 million — is now projected at $82 million due to inflation, officials have said.

It is scheduled to be completed in August 2024, according to the district. But the new indoor training facility may not open until later that fall, Philo said.

Revenue from the bond issue will also be used for upgrades at Fairborn Primary School, abatement and demolition of Baker Middle School, and funds for the new middle school to be built on Commerce Center south of the new high school, according to the district.

“These facilities provide our students with opportunities to grow and excel, and we are very excited for our students and families,” Superintendent Gene Lolli said in a statement.

Voters originally approved a 5.83-mill bond issue in 2020 to pay for the new high school, arts center and athletics complex in conjunction with Ohio Facilities Construction Commission funding.