$13.7 million Grand Meadow schools referendum set for vote
Published 10:21 am Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Grand Meadow Principal Paul Besel points out features to a potential physical education community complex. Grand Meadow Public Schools is asking the public to support a $13.7 million referendum for additional space and school renovations. — Herald file photo
Grand Meadow residents will decide on Tuesday whether Grand Meadow Public Schools will get new space.
Voters will either approve or shoot down a $13.7 million bond referendum to add two traditional school buildings and make renovation’s to the district’s dome structures.
The referendum would mean a homeowner with property valued at $100,000 would see taxes increase about $181 per year until 2040, with homes valued at $124,000 facing an increase of $249 per year.
An artist’s rendering shows what the complex could look like.
Agricultural homesteads with a $100,000 and acreage valued at $6,000 per acre would see larger increases. A 160-acre property’s taxes would increase by $1,380 per year and a 320-acre property would likely have a $3,371 increase per year.
Grand Meadow is still paying off its dome school, with about $7.7 million in debt left on the project. That debt is scheduled to be paid in full in 2030, but the referendum would mean the school wouldn’t be paid off until 2040.
District officials say the renovation is necessary not only to cope with Grand Meadow’s current student population but to accommodate students who will enroll over the next few years.
