Plan for school renovations and additions advances

Panel: Cost should not exceed $32.5 million

By Karin Burke | The Daily Journal

Published Thursday, February 8, 2007

School board members will review a plan to remodel and expand existing buildings rather than build a new school. The district’s facilities task force said the work should cost less than $32.5 million, about 47 percent the cost of a plan voters rejected in 2005, which included building a new high school at cost of $56.3 million.

The proposed changes would affect students in every grade, and would serve the district for the next 20 years.

Wednesday’s discussion focused on cost, which members said must be realistic for voters to accept, but allow for structural, educational and future technological needs.

Superintendent Jerry Ness, who facilitated the meeting but is not a task force member, asked the group to remember established criteria for the plan.

“We need to put the proposed amount in front of each of our three criteria,” he said. “First, does this amount allow us to get our house back in order, to control our deficit spending and meet our budget’s short- and long -term goals? Second, does this dollar amount meet all of our security needs? And third, does it give us the efficiency and quality we need as a school district?”

Parent Lynne Olsen, who served on the two previous task forces, said the plan must be acceptable to voters and carry the district into the future.

“My family has young kids, and we will be in the district for 10 years yet. I want to see a proposal that will be accepted by the voters,” she said. “But I also want to make sure this isn’t just a patch job, and that we make real and lasting changes,” she said.

Task force members representing the agricultural community, which has historically voted the referenda down, spoke of their concerns on the cost.

“I don’t know that there will be organized opposition like there was (for previous referenda), but $35 million might just be too high for farmers and agriculturists,” said one farmer, who asked not to be identified.

Another farmer agreed.

“We want this to go through,” Charles Piekarski said. “I speak to people explaining that this plan will touch every school, not just the high school, and will work for years to come. But we just can’t ask too much.”

The task force also debated whether to ask voters two questions — as was done in the 2005 referendum — or one. A second question would break certain amenities away from approval of the basic plan. Such amenities might include increased security, additional window, and a larger gym.

“A second question just allows the voter to say no,” said one task force member. “It sounds like an extra, and the fact is the second part of the question is not a wish list, it’s something the school needs.”

A second task force member reiterated a commonly-expressed concern, saying “A second question is a no vote. This is my third task force. We need to make sure this goes through, in one ball of wax.”

After lengthy discussions and a number of votes, the task force kept the proposal at one question.

The task force will make the recommendation to the school board during its 5 p.m. Monday meeting.