Sedalia School Board to Vote on Accepting Sedalia Parks and Rec’s Offer to Buy Jennie Jaynes Stadium Property

The pursuit to build a new high school activities stadium at Smith-Cotton High School continues today (Sept. 9). A few months ago, the Sedalia School Board voted to hire a construction manager to build a new athletic and activities center. The plans have been moving along ever since. Today, the Sedalia School Board will be voting on whether to accept and sign the contract that the Sedalia Parks and Rec Board voted on. They would pay $1 million to the Sedalia School Board for possession of the land.

The total financing of the stadium is supposed to be $6,140,000 in order to fund this project. However, it was explained early on that $2 million of the funding was to come from private donations, $1 million from the sale or private donor, and the remaining was to come from the Capital Project fund reserves and would not require a tax levy increase.

The Sedalia School District has not released official figures on private donations, but according to Sedalia School Communications Director Bob Satnan, private fundraising is going well and the school district is pleased to have many supportive partners in our community. Although fundraising is going well, they are short of their goal at this time.

“There is no real deadline for the private fundraising, as this project will be paid off over multiple years,” Satnan explained. “We will be able to accept financial support for it for years to come.”

Satnan said the district does not have specific fundraisers planned for the project in the traditional sense, nor do they plan to. "We will continue to have conversations with anyone who is interested in supporting the new multi-use complex at Smith-Cotton High School," Satnan said.

I asked if the Sedalia School District would go ahead and start building and placing infrastructure for the stadium should they be short of the goal. “That transaction, along with the sale of the lease certificates of participation, will allow us to begin site development almost immediately," Satnan replied. "Our plan remains to play the 2014 football schedule at the new complex.”

Last week, the Sedalia School District announced they have made the financing of $6,140,000 Series 2013 Lease Certificates of Participation available to local individual and institutional investors. Proceeds from these certificates will fund construction of a multi-use complex behind the high school building on the Smith-Cotton High School campus on Tiger Pride Boulevard.

If the board accepts this portion then the financing proceeds are expected to be in place by Sept. 18 and the project can move ahead.