The John Glenn School Board members opened a public hearing this week on proposed upcoming building projects at Walkerton Elementary School and at North Liberty Elementary School. A Preliminary Determination public hearing was also held on the process on how the corporation will fund the projects.
Much of the work at Walkerton Elementary School will be heating and cooling updates, new ceilings, interior and exterior doors and frame replacement, office staff bathroom reconfiguration, insulation in Unit A wing, locker room renovations, new paint, cabinetry, new carpeting, and a redesign of the canopy. At North Liberty Elementary School, heating and cooling updates will continue, as well as the replacement of classroom doors and frames and other interior doors, and a few exterior doors.
To complete all of these updates, Lisa Huntington from Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors explained that the corporation is seeking $10 million in lease rental bonds to pay for the projects.
Huntington explained how this project would affect the taxpayers.
“In 2023, the school corporation experienced an unusual rise in net assessed value which most of the units in the State of Indiana did,” stated Huntington. “It kind of brought the tax rate back down a little bit. We’re just restoring it to the level that it was in 2022.”
Superintendent Christopher Winchell stated again there is a slight tax rate increase, but it is taking the rate back to the 2022 tax rate level. The median house value in the school district is $137,300 which would be a $1.32 monthly tax impact, or a yearly impact of $15.79.
There were no public comments.
Following the public hearings, the school board took action to unanimously approve the Project Resolution which means the school board agrees that building updates are necessary.
The board also unanimously approved the Preliminary Determination Resolution which means it is the intention of the school corporation to seek at most a $10 million bond with up to a 20-year repayment timeline with a 6 percent interest rate.
A Declaration of Official Intent to Reimburse was also unanimously approved. If the school board spends any money to get some projects started ahead of the bond sale, bond money will be used to reimburse those specific expenses in the funds as necessary.
