A new campus is expected to be built for Highland Elementary School within the next few years. It will go directly behind the new Daviess County Middle School, essentially creating a full pre-K through 8th grade location.
The Daviess County Public Schools Board of Education on Tuesday approved moving Highland to “transitional” status, meaning no major renovations can be done to the building. District officials said that status change was necessary to begin the process of building a new school, but there is no timeline that must be followed.
Superintendent Matt Robbins said he envisions the new facility being built within 5 years, but it will be up to the board to make any decisions on when to move forward. Board members Frank Riney and Dale Stewart said they’d like to delay the construction as long as possible.
“Right now, I think things are expensive,” Riney said. “I anticipate things improving as far as costs go. I think things may slow down to the point that it will be more reasonable, but it may be further than the ‘near future.’”
Robbins noted that the current building is in fine shape, meaning there aren’t concerns that any structural failures or major renovation needs will come into play if the district waits a few years to start construction on the new school.
The district already owns the land for the new Highland building, as they purchased it at the same time they bought the land for the new DCMS.
The two schools would back up to one another. The DCMS entrance is already located on Fairview Drive, while Highland would face Calumet Trace.
Robbins said it’s a benefit for both the students and district to have the facilities next to one another, as Highland is a feeder school for DCMS.
Equally as important, he said, is getting away from KY 54. He said there’s already a safety concern with congestion, and it could get worse if the state ever moves forward with widening the roadway.
Robbins said the district would likely sell the current Highland property once the transition is complete, adding they already had to sell some road frontage as right of way to the state.
“It was equivalent to about $1 million an acre,” he said. “I think there’s about 11.5 acres there, so it’s a valuable piece of property.”
Robbins again stressed there is no timeline for when the project will move forward.
