At its August 15th meeting, the District 64 Board of Education unanimously voted to place an $89,106,629 million bond referendum on the November 5th ballot. Voters will be asked for funding to address critical needs at nearly every school, including replacing outdated locks and doors and updating old and failing heating, lighting, electrical, and plumbing systems. The proposed improvements address needs and problems that will worsen if untreated.
“It’s been almost a year of facility planning and research to better understand how our schools do not support our students and staff from a health and safety perspective and educationally,” said Superintendent Dr. Ben Collins.” We look forward to the democratic process of having this bond referendum on the November ballot, allowing the community to express their views and have their voices heard.”
The referendum would address the most pressing facility issues impacting all seven schools. Some benefits of the proposal are creating healthier, safer, and more secure schools, enhancing ADA accessibility, moving academic support out of the hallways, reducing costly and disruptive emergency repairs, ensuring all students have access to a quality learning environment, and protecting academic excellence and your property values.
The bond issue on the ballot would cost approximately $411 a year for a taxpayer whose home has a fair market value of $500,000.
“Thank you to the Board for supporting the recommendation for a bond referendum to keep our kids healthy and safe and improve the outdated and costly infrastructure district-wide,” said School Board President Dr. Denise Pearl. “We firmly believe that now is the time to address these critical upgrades and improvements in our schools.”
It has been 27 years since district voters approved a bond referendum for capital improvements. Dr. Pearl shared that the decision to place this bond referendum on the ballot was not taken lightly by the Board. “These conversations have been difficult, but I want to thank the entire Board for supporting this proposal and everyone’s perspectives throughout the process,” said Dr. Pearl. “Our collaborative discussions have paved the way for us to act as prudent financial stewards while safeguarding the future of our schools and community.”
The District and Board have continued to downsize the proposal to reduce the tax impact. Starting at $145,616,247 million, the District reduced the request by approximately $40 million this spring. After additional public input, including public opinion research, the proposal was further downsized by $10 million to the final number of $89,106,629, which will appear on the ballot in November.
“We have planned this referendum with transparency and deep respect for our taxpayers and community,” said Dr. Collins. “Over six weeks in the spring, we held 17 presentations, including tours and community coffee events, to provide our community with an opportunity to provide feedback and gain a firsthand understanding of the critical needs within our schools.”
The District's robust community outreach program started in March with a Citizen Task Force Meeting, where 40 community members helped vet the proposal before sharing it Districtwide. In April, the first Direct Mailer went out to 16,101 households, and a few weeks later, another mailer went out to the same registered voters. We also created a digital ad campaign that resulted in 491,808 impressions.
“Some of our schools have been serving our community for nearly a century, and as we look to the future, it’s crucial to consider the best ways we can protect our buildings, protect our children, and preserve our future,” said Dr. Collins.
To help the community stay informed, we are hosting over 18 public engagement events, including community coffees, virtual presentations, and tours of Lincoln Middle School. We will also be presenting at various standing community events. The schedule and additional resources to better understand the state of our facilities are on our new webpage, d64.org/referendum2024.