NEW GLARUS - New Glarus voters will be back at the polls Nov. 8 to consider a new school referendum authorizing the district to borrow $7.35 million to expand and upgrade school facilities.
The new proposal stays away from two major reasons residents gave for defeating a previous $10 million proposal last spring - higher taxes and a third gymnasium.
"The public said, 'don't raise taxes and no new gym,'" said David Strudthoff, district administrator.
Voters rejected two referendums April 5 that would have allowed the district to borrow $10 million for a similar project and to exceed annual revenue limits by $85,000 for increased operating expenses connected to the additions.
But the district still needs to provide for an anticipated influx of students.
"We hit more than 900 (students) for the first time in history this year," Strudthoff said. The revised plan is designed to handle about 80 to 90 students per grade level, he added.
The new plan, called Project PRIDE for Patrons Reinvesting in Developing Excellence, was built on ideas from three major surveys, Strudthoff said. A public survey was conducted in April, while a parent survey and a full staff survey were conducted in August.
As a a primary objective of the board, Project PRIDE will not increase current taxes, said Strudthoff. Covering the cost of $7.35 million in general obligation bonds will ride on continuing the existing debt, which will be retired in 2014. Other financial arrangements, such as a short-term loan or the fund balance, will serve to bridge the debt service for the intervening two years.
In exchange for its money, the school district is set to create a middle school for fifth- through eighth-graders by building an addition to the north side of the high school, remodeling some classrooms and adding a multipurpose room.
Moving fifth- and sixth-graders to the high school will facilitate providing them some added educational opportunities in vocational and foreign language courses, according to Strudthoff.
The district will also remodel about 19 classrooms and, to get some savings from energy efficiency, replace windows in the separate elementary school building.
To create more efficient use of staff and space, 4K through eighth grades and rooms will be "reconfigured" into "classroom educational clusters," Strudthoff added.
To eliminate the need for another gymnasium, the school plans to build a multipurpose room.
"We have two spectator gyms; we don't need another gym," Strudthoff said. "We need space for overflow."
The multi-purpose room is specifically designed to meet the needs not only of the school, but also the community.
Strudthoff told designers he wanted a room that would provide space for a movie for seniors citizens in the morning, recess for fifth- and sixth-graders at noon, physical education classes in the afternoon, eighth-grade practice sessions after school and a speaker with dinner in the evening.
"All this in one day," he added.
Strudthoff said the space could be used for vocal and instrumental concerts, as well as indoor and outdoor theatrical productions, and the school kitchen could be rented out for catered events, creating a source of revenue for the school.
The new proposal stays away from two major reasons residents gave for defeating a previous $10 million proposal last spring - higher taxes and a third gymnasium.
"The public said, 'don't raise taxes and no new gym,'" said David Strudthoff, district administrator.
Voters rejected two referendums April 5 that would have allowed the district to borrow $10 million for a similar project and to exceed annual revenue limits by $85,000 for increased operating expenses connected to the additions.
But the district still needs to provide for an anticipated influx of students.
"We hit more than 900 (students) for the first time in history this year," Strudthoff said. The revised plan is designed to handle about 80 to 90 students per grade level, he added.
The new plan, called Project PRIDE for Patrons Reinvesting in Developing Excellence, was built on ideas from three major surveys, Strudthoff said. A public survey was conducted in April, while a parent survey and a full staff survey were conducted in August.
As a a primary objective of the board, Project PRIDE will not increase current taxes, said Strudthoff. Covering the cost of $7.35 million in general obligation bonds will ride on continuing the existing debt, which will be retired in 2014. Other financial arrangements, such as a short-term loan or the fund balance, will serve to bridge the debt service for the intervening two years.
In exchange for its money, the school district is set to create a middle school for fifth- through eighth-graders by building an addition to the north side of the high school, remodeling some classrooms and adding a multipurpose room.
Moving fifth- and sixth-graders to the high school will facilitate providing them some added educational opportunities in vocational and foreign language courses, according to Strudthoff.
The district will also remodel about 19 classrooms and, to get some savings from energy efficiency, replace windows in the separate elementary school building.
To create more efficient use of staff and space, 4K through eighth grades and rooms will be "reconfigured" into "classroom educational clusters," Strudthoff added.
To eliminate the need for another gymnasium, the school plans to build a multipurpose room.
"We have two spectator gyms; we don't need another gym," Strudthoff said. "We need space for overflow."
The multi-purpose room is specifically designed to meet the needs not only of the school, but also the community.
Strudthoff told designers he wanted a room that would provide space for a movie for seniors citizens in the morning, recess for fifth- and sixth-graders at noon, physical education classes in the afternoon, eighth-grade practice sessions after school and a speaker with dinner in the evening.
"All this in one day," he added.
Strudthoff said the space could be used for vocal and instrumental concerts, as well as indoor and outdoor theatrical productions, and the school kitchen could be rented out for catered events, creating a source of revenue for the school.