Giant school facilities plan sent to school board
State legislators discuss options to help districts pay for bricks and
mortar
By TRAVIS PURSER
Express Staff Writer
Jim Lewis, Blaine County School
District superintendent, presents a 10-year, multimillion dollar facilities
master plan to the public at the Wood River Middle School on Monday night. “This is a
better way to build buildings,” he said, “thinking ahead and paying as you go
instead of getting behind and borrowing to catch up.”
A $37.7 million proposal aimed at revamping old school facilities and
building new ones over the next 10 years passed a major hurdle on Monday night when
planners voted unanimously to present the idea to the Blaine County School District board
of directors.
If approved by the board, the district would likely present a plant
facilities levy to voters in May.
Assuming a 5.7 percent interest rate, the levy would cost the county $4
million a year for up to 10 years. Taxpayers could expect a tax rate increase of from $46
to $86 per year for each $100,000 in their property value.
The levy—unlike a bond issue which requires a two-thirds
vote—needs 55 percent voter approval.
The district’s Strategic Vision Facilities Committee and educational
consultants, The Matrix Group, presented project ideas to about 80 citizens at the Wood
River Middle School.
The district’s 10-year vision includes a new $19.6 million high
school that would allow the current high school to be shared by the school district, the
Blaine County Recreation District and the College of Southern Idaho.
Other projects include a $5 million overhaul of the Carey School, a new
$8.1 million elementary school, a $2.7 million Wood River Middle School expansion, a new
$1 million bus barn and several smaller renovations.
Given current population growth projections and the fact that some
district schools have already reached maximum capacity, district officials say the
proposed projects are inevitable. Approving the projects now, they say, could save
taxpayers over $27 million in future interest payments.
"This is a better way to build buildings," district
Superintendent Jim Lewis said, "Thinking ahead and paying as you go instead of
getting behind and borrowing to catch up."
On a written questionnaire, 50 of the people in attendance said they
approved of the plan.
Four people said the plan is almost right, but needs some work. Their
recommendations focused on estimated financial figures planners used to project costs.
Some were concerned that unexpected high inflation could cause the district to run short
of money before the projects were completed.
One person said the plan was "off base" and that the committee
should start over. He didn’t like the idea of a new high school in the Woodside
subdivision.
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Meanwhile, state legislators in Boise are discussing several proposals to
help school districts pay for new buildings and renovations.
Some legislators believe this will finally be the year lawmakers come
through because of an ongoing lawsuit against the state. The litigation, in part, is aimed
at expediting school facility ballot measures.
Legislators are also working with a $54 million surplus this year.
Just what lawmakers come up with remains unclear, however, because no
consensus has emerged, several legislators said Monday.
Republican Gov. Dirk Kempthorne has proposed that the state spend $40
million to $50 million over the next 20 years paying the interest on school bonds. But
that plan would only help pay for renovations at unsafe schools, which Blaine County
school officials say is not an issue in the district.
Many Democrats believe the governor’s plan does not go far enough.
They want to spend new earnings from investments in the state Endowment Fund on school
buildings. A bill to be introduced by Rep. Roger Chase of Pocatello would provide about
$20 million a year starting in five years.
Still another idea being discussed by House and Senate leaders would let
school districts borrow from the state and pay back the principal and interest. That way,
if districts could not persuade voters on school bonds, they could take advantage of the
new financing option, even though they would still have to find a way to pay for the
buildings.
Sen. Gary Schroeder, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, said
legislative leaders need to discuss the options with Kempthorne and try to reach a
consensus. If they don’t, lawmakers will have to wade through a host of
legislators’ ideas, including one to reduce a major school bond threshold from
two-thirds of the vote to 60 percent.
Rep. Wendy Jaquet, a Ketchum Democrat who is the house minority leader,
said she’s optimistic legislators will offer school districts some help. "The
lawsuit is making everyone act on this," she said.
Legislative reporter Steve Bard in Boise
contributed to this story.
