Cedar Rapids schools plan for potential $50 million bond vote for 2022

CEDAR RAPIDS — The Cedar Rapids school board, without discussion, last week authorized payment for a consultant to begin the planning needed for an estimated $50 million bond issue referendum as early as next March.

The school board approved on its consent agenda an agreement between the district and OPN Architects to study secondary schools for a facility needs assessment. The agreement, which includes six middle schools, three high schools and one alternative high school, is worth up to $298,000.

“The (facilities master plan) task force work will be a much larger conversation for the board in the coming months,” Superintendent Noreen Bush said in an email to The Gazette.

The district is considering holding a special election on a general obligation bond issue for either March 1, 2022, the earliest date the district can hold an election, or on Sept. 13, 2022, Bush said. The referendum would need to be approved by at least 60 percent of the voters within the district to pass.

A 46-day notice to the county auditor is required for to schedule most special elections, according to the Iowa Secretary of State’s website.

A $50 million general obligation bond issue — the price tag mentioned in a letter from OPN to the district --- would not raise property taxes, Bush said. All district general obligation bonds were paid off in fiscal 2021. So if a $50 million bond sale is approved, the amount needed to pay for it would be offset. School districts often retire existing debts before taking on new ones, thereby continuing longer without raising their current tax rates.

A facilities master plan task force, which developed recommendations to the board on a master plan for elementary schools adopted in January 2018 but then was put on hold, might make recommendations that would result in different projects, costs, funding or timelines. The task force to assess the needs of secondary schools will include former and new members to the committee this fall and winter, Bush said.

“The board is familiar with the (facilities master plan) task force recommendations and the ‘pause’ on the plan,” Bush said.

Included in the proposal for a referendum is kitchen renovation at Kennedy High School, secure entries for Taft and Harding middle schools, work on school gyms and athletic centers and finishing upgrades to middle school performance venues, according to the agreement with OPN Architects.

Cedar Rapids schools and OPN Architects – Facility Needs Assessment by Gazette Online on Scribd

OPN Architects is beginning this month to gather existing building models, plans and documentation and begin developing ideas to address the identified projects. In November, OPN will finalize cost estimates.

District administrators and the board will begin circulating petitions calling for a special election. To hold a special election, the district needs signatures from at least 25 percent of those who voted in the last election, which will be the one held Nov. 2.

A needs assessment for secondary schools is the next step in the facilities master plan, which was put on pause before the pandemic began here in March 2020, Bush said.

As a part of the plan, the district constructed and opened West Willow Elementary School this year, which replaced Coolidge Elementary School. Maple Grove Elementary School will open to replace Jackson Elementary School in the fall of 2022. The third school in the plan, Truman Elementary at 441 W. Post Rd. NW, would be closed once the two larger schools are built.

Over the next 15 to 20 years, the district plans to build 10 new elementary schools and renovate three. This process will include the closure and repurposing of eight schools.

School board President Nancy Humbles, who is running for re-election this year, made no specific mention of a possible bond vote as early as next spring in Sept. 30 interview with The Gazette’s editorial board.

When asked by the editorial board about facilities plans for middle and high schools, Humbles said, “That is something we will be moving forward on.”

“This is going to be a great time for us to step back, pull together the facility master team, bring in new voices and see what will be our next direction when it comes to the plan,” Humbles said. “We have to hear the voices of the community because their children will be attending those schools.”

In the years since the school board approved the elementary schools facilities plan, its price tag has increased by $85 million — to $309 million — and the construction of Jackson alone is nearly $6 million more than was expected.

A task force will work this fall through early winter, reviewing the first master plan, state data and the results of the secondary buildings’ assessment from OPN Architects, Bush said. The task force also will consider the next steps on the elementary school scope of the work, which is funded by SAVE — Secure an Advanced Vision for Education. SAVE is an existing statewide sales tax allocated to school districts based on certified enrollment.

An assessment conducted by an outside contractor — OPN Architects — is the first step to gather data for the task force, Bush said.

Community members will have the chance to learn more about the plan and provide input through town halls, community meetings and surveys, Bush said.

Community members interested in participating in the process can sign up at a link in the district eNewsletter sent every Friday.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com