Three possible sites identified for Blenheim school

Marlboro County School District officials have identified three possible sites that could be the location of a new elementary school for the Blenheim community.

The construction of the proposed school, which would include kindergarten through eighth grade, will be funded through an $18 million bond referendum that Marlboro County residents approved Tuesday during the general election.

The referendum doesn’t call for a millage increase, and would be in place for 25 years.

Randall Malichi, the district’s public information officer, said there are three options the district is researching as possible sites: one located in Blenheim, one 3 miles outside of Blenheim and one located near Bennettsville.

Malichi said the intent of Superintendent Alisa Goodman and the board of trustees is to build the school as close to Blenheim as possible on S.C. 38.

The board recently approved a resolution that supports building the new school in Blenheim, with the closest proximity to downtown as possible.

Malichi said the district has hired a company to begin an environmental survey of the site in Blenheim to determine its feasibility.

According to an independent facility study, the 55-year-old school sits on a split campus and space doesn’t support the educational program, so it is recommended the school be built on a new site.

The project could take 14 months to complete.

The district will need to maintain 33 mills to pay for the new school and other debt service. It will take 18 mills for the project, which would generate about $1,080,000.

If someone owned a home with an assessed value of $100,000, that person would pay $72 a year. If it was $50,0000, that person would pay $36 a year.

This was the district’s second attempt in the past three years at passing a bond referendum to improve its facilities.

Goodman said in a statement released by the school district that “in voting for a new school for the students of the Blenheim community, the citizens have made a statement that there exists a strong commitment to the children of Marlboro County.”