Close to 80 citizens turned up for Thursday night’s meeting on the upcoming Nov.

Friday, September 24, 1999

Close to 80 citizens turned up for Thursday night’s meeting on the upcoming Nov. 2 referendum ballot.

That was enough to get the ball rolling, Superintendent James Hess said.

The purpose of the meeting, held at Austin High School’s Knowlton auditorium at 7 p.m., was to update those invited of district finances and needs for the referendum as well as to organize five groups to start working on the grass-roots campaign.

The five groups include the following committees: voter registration; speakers bureau; information central; community-staff relations and ways and means (or budget).

"I think there were some very bright and positive community leaders in attendance," Hess said after the meeting. "I’m looking forward to working with them to bring about a successful conclusion to this referendum campaign … They have a lot of good work to be done in the next five weeks."

The district is proposing a levy override of $1.6 million annually over 10 years, beginning in 2001. The previous five-year $1.29 million override expires after the 2000/2001 school year.

If this proposed levy of $1.6 million annually passes, taxpayers will be on the hook for $608,000 annually, or 32 percent of a $1.9 million annual levy override. The state will pay the other 68 percent.

Hess told the Austin Board of Education at a workshop session this morning that his next step will be to choose a chair for each of the five committees; that chair will then choose a co-chair. Then it’s off to work in preparation for the Nov. 2 vote.

When one board member asked what the board’s role was in the referendum, Hess replied, "support and inform."

"I wouldn’t see board members as committee chairs, but you would be welcome to work on a sub-committee if you like," he said. "This needs to be a community-based campaign, and the chairs need to come from outside the board and outside the central office. It has to be a grass-roots effort."

In other business this morning, the school board discussed a possible restructuring plan for the district’s technology personnel and budget plus facility needs for the alternative learning programs. Currently Hess and several other administrators are looking at ways to put the district’s different alternative programs under one roof.

A review of the district’s zero-tolerance expulsion procedure was tabled until Thursday’s 7 a.m. workshop session.to push levy referendum