116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
More than 6,000 signatures gets $117 million Cedar Rapids school bond referendum placed on ballot
The plan would modernize 3 historic schools in the district, renovate Wilson Middle School and aspects of Kennedy High School
Sep. 8, 2025 8:49 pm
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CEDAR RAPIDS — A $117 million school bond referendum that would modernize and renovate schools is headed to voters in the Cedar Rapids Community School District Nov. 4.
The Cedar Rapids school board Monday approved a resolution ordering an election after receiving 6,199 signatures from voters in the district, verified by board secretary Jillian Schulte.
“I want to offer my thanks to the entire community,” school board President Cindy Garlock said. “This has been a process involving a lot of hard work by district personnel and folks in the community, starting with all those people who served on the facilities master plan committee. They sat through monthly meetings, pouring through pages of data, so we could come up with a plan that truly represents what the community wants.”
“It was a massive effort on the part of so many people to gather signatures for the petition. I know everyone on this board supports this bond issue. We know how important it is for our students to have the best possible facilities we can provide,” Garlock said.
Signatures were collected over the last three months and delivered to the district last week by Believe in CR Schools — a committee backed by the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, business leaders and families.
To get a referendum placed on the ballot, at least 25 percent of the number of registered voters in the school district voting in the last election of school officials must sign the petition, according to Iowa Code. That’s 5,365 signatures for this referendum, Schulte said.
A total of 6,802 signatures were collected, but some signatures did not meet eligibility criteria, such as not residing in the Cedar Rapids district or not providing a signature, street address, city or the date of signing, Schulte said.
The plan, if approved by voters in the school district, would modernize three historic schools in the Cedar Rapids district and renovate aspects of Kennedy High School.
The plan also includes allocating $35 million to renovate Wilson Middle School into an elementary school that would house Cedar River Academy and Grant Elementary, which would be removed from the district’s inventory.
“Not only is this incredibly important for students, but it’s also integral for staff, and our staff deserve this as well,” school board member Jennifer Borcherding said.
The bond referendum has received wide-ranging support from labor, civic, education partners and local elected officials in the Cedar Rapids community.
The plan was created collaboratively with the help of a Future Ready Facilities Task Force made up of more than 80 community members, business leaders and school staff.
A poll commissioned last spring by the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance indicates 61.8 percent of voters now say they are likely to vote in favor of the bond.
When given more information about the bond referendum — such as how it is expected to save taxpayers millions annually in reduced maintenance costs and improve school security — almost 68 percent of people polled said they were likely to vote yes for the $117 million referendum.
But with 60 percent approval needed to pass, that’s still a very narrow path to victory, leaders at the Economic Alliance said.
“I know the work isn’t over. A tremendous amount of work went into getting us here. It’s harder than you think to get that many signatures on a petition. But I think it was really important to listen to our community,” school board member Jennifer Neumann said.
What’s the plan?
The plan includes renovations to four schools in the district:
- $25 million to renovate Roosevelt Creative Corridor Business Academy, a middle school in northwest Cedar Rapids, to address school safety and operational efficiency issues and to accommodate students from Wilson Middle School, which would become an elementary school;
- $45 million to renovate McKinley STEAM Academy, a middle school in southeast Cedar Rapids;
- $35 million to renovate Wilson Middle School into an elementary school that would house Cedar River Academy and Grant Elementary, which would be removed from the district’s inventory;
- And $12 million for renovations at Kennedy High School to address crowding in the cafeteria and common areas and constructing additions to add high school college and career programming.
The plan would save the school district $140.8 million in operational costs over the bond’s 20-year life cycle, or $6.48 million a year, Chad Schumacher, the district’s operations director, said in an interview with The Gazette earlier this year. This means the district would see a return on investment of almost $24 million if the $117 million bond is approved.
A $117 million bond issue would cost the owner of a $200,000 home in the Cedar Rapids school district about $7.47 a month, or $89.60 per year, starting in fiscal 2027.
The property tax levy for fiscal 2026 — which began July 1 — is $13.64 per $1,000 of taxable valuation.
Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com
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