Ravenna City Council will wait until fall to ask for a bond issue for a new safety building, but several of the elected officials don’t want to wait longer than that.
Ravenna issues won’t compete in May
City officials have considered upgrading safety facilities for years, and in 2022 purchased the former Ravenna High School property at East Main Street and Clinton Avenue as a site for the safety center and city hall. At the time of the $315,000 purchase, officials said the safety building would be constructed first.
An architect hired last year submitted renderings for both buildings, and gave a preliminary estimate of $12 million for the safety building.
Earlier this month, after a plea from Ravenna City School District, City Council said it wouldn’t move forward with a bond issue in May, hoping to improve the district’s chances for a levy.
Interim Superintendent Ben Ribelin said the school district, which is under a status of ” fiscal caution ” with the Ohio State Auditor’s Office, will seek another levy in May for operating funds. Voters have rejected four consecutive requests from the district, which hasn’t seen new money for operating expenses for nearly 20 years