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$22M project, Sept. 12 vote after BOE tweaks proposals
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · May 18, 2017


For the most part, the planned school additions will not change drastically, but the School Board hopes the tweaks put in place last week will give them the last 4- to 5-percent voter approval they lacked for passage in February.


The school district now predicts borrowing $19.79 million, about $880,000 more than the February estimate of $19.11 million. The board reached a consensus to try again with voters on Sept. 12.

The remainder of the funding — for what is now estimated up to a $22 million project — would come from Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) and Secure an Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE) funding.

West Branch Community School still needs a 60-percent supermajority to pass the bond referendum and to increase the property tax rate for paying off debt — the “debt service levy” — from $2.70 to $3.50.

Voters in February favored the project with 56 percent support and favored increasing the debt service levy with 55 percent support.

That $3.50 cap is the same amount requested in the February vote. The school is currently taxing $1.07 per $1,000 assessed valuation to pay off debt, but due to an increase in property values, the levy will drop to about $1.04. By shifting that 3 cents (actually, closer to 3.5 cents) to the new referendum, the board picks up that $880,000 difference.

Struxture Architects offered some options at a May 10 special meeting, and the school board made some changes. Struxture’s Craig Schwerdtfeger and Jesse Lizer said they will return new drawings to the board in time for its June 5 meeting.

“We have a plan with 56 percent support,” Board President Mike Colbert said to open the keep-it-or-change-it discussion. “I don’t want to radically change it when we’re that close to success.”

The rest of the board agreed in leaving the fundamental pieces: a 700-seat auditorium at the high school; classroom additions and new offices at the elementary and high schools; a new entrance and adjacent parking at the elementary school; and a relocated library at the high school.

Board member Mike Owen said “scaling back” the project is “not practical.”

Board member Jodi Yeggy said she “would love it if we could cut $5 million to $10 million out.”

“But we can’t fix all the issues we have,” she said. “It would be very short-sighted to save a little bit of money.”

Board member Keith Schultes said he “still hears misinformation over the last vote,” like that the plan favors sports.

“I think we have a great plan,” he said. “We need good facilities. I favor keeping the plan with a few minor tweaks.”

Board member Julie Sexton said she wants voters to remember that many community members provided input over five years to get to this point.

“If we keep putting it off, the price is just going to go up and up and up,” she said. “We need to attract teachers and we need the facilities to back it up.”

Colbert said that, to him, shrinking the size of the auditorium is “non-negotiable.”

Some of the tweaks discussed include making two guidance counselor offices in what will be a combined middle school and high school building; adding details to the main office to show where office staff will work; adding restrooms next to the high school cafeteria; cutting out one room in the commons to create a more open space for easier supervision; and sealing off the middle school wing from noise on the high school side.

Colbert said these ideas primarily came from the public after viewing the initial set of drawings.

Yeggy asked that once the tweaks are in place, she would like the new drawings run by the middle school staff.

Board members said several people asked about converting the newer gymnasium to a competition gym. Lizer said swapping out the floor with wood could cost $70,000 to $90,000, and the entire process, including bleachers in what is now the weight room, would cost “more than $1 million.”

Lizer said the converted gym would include seating for 1,200, with 400 in the balcony and 800 below.

Superintendent Kevin Hatfield said the weight room would, with the conversion, move to the multi-purpose building project that is already underway.