Lost consolidation savings would be the biggest hit to Lehighton Area School District's checkbook if the school board changes course on constructing a K-5 elementary center, according to its superintendent.

Jonathan Cleaver said the district would stand to lose at least $1.2 million per year if it decides to keep open its four existing elementary schools - Shull-David, Franklin, Mahoning and East Penn."That is the savings we have calculated for transportation, energy, staff consolidation through attrition and a number of other areas where you can save if you have one school instead of four," Cleaver said.The $1.2 million annual savings, which Cleaver called a conservative estimate, is accounted for in the district's five-year financial plan, and is earmarked for debt service payments on the $32.5 million Lehighton borrowed for the elementary center in September."That financial plan right now assures us we would not have a negative impact to the debt service if we go with the elementary center," Cleaver added.Lehighton's school board passed a three-month moratorium in December on any new PlanCon filings or approvals on the center to allow three new board members to be educated on the project and any alternatives.PlanCon is the multiple-step approval process the district must go through with the state for major building projects."I would just like to see what other options are available," Richard Beltz, one of the first-year board members, said. "If there is another viable option, I'd like to pursue it. If the elementary center is the best option, that is where we'll go. I'm not so sure it is the best option right now. That's why I ran for this board."A 2014 feasibility study from district architectural firm EI Associates, projects the cost of renovating the four schools also at $32.5 million.Costs to dateThe moratorium will not affect any bills already owed due to existing contracts or any reviews, such as those from Lehighton Borough, already in the pipeline.In addition to the consolidation savings, Cleaver said Lehighton would lose out on $1.8 million in grant funding for the elementary center if renovation becomes the preferred choice. The district is also under contract for almost $2 million in expenses between the schematic design, design development and construction document phases of the project."Those contracts are already signed, so that would essentially be lost money if the district goes in another direction," Cleaver said.If the four schools would close, he said Lehighton would look to sell or lease the building, giving the district additional income not accounted for in the annual $1.2 million consolidation savings estimate."The Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit has expressed interest and I'd love to have the community college with a presence in Lehighton," Cleaver said.New board members will have a chance to ask questions directly to representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Education in a conference call.The district has been in discussions with PDE dating back to a previous board in 2013. According to Cleaver, notes from that meeting show school consolidation was an option back then.The next step in the PlanCon process would be going out for bids, something the district still plans to do in the spring, after the moratorium ends in March."We're still moving forward with the planning process," Cleaver said.