New school ‘campus’ must prove itself

Build new? Or repair and reuse? What best serves the community?

Like many public entities, the Cedar Rapids school district has faced those post-flood questions. And last fall, the school board decided to build new - an Educational Service Center campus on one site to replace the flood-damaged ESC, warehouse, annex and carpenter/paint shop.

But why not repair the damaged buildings - out-of-pocket cost of about $1.5 million - and move back? After all, these are not classrooms.

The answer isn't that simple. Certainly, any replacement should focus mostly on function - not grandiose form or an aesthetic statement - and produce operational savings to justify the investment.

The ESC campus project will cost up to $45 million, with $12.1 million from federal disaster funding. School Infrastructure Local Option sales tax, now in place through 2029 after the Legislature's action made it statewide, will pay the balance. Actually, the district will be borrowing against future SILO revenues.

We see several points in favor of the new campus, which, according to school and design officials, will:

l Include energy-efficient features expected to produce 50 percent savings in energy costs compared to meeting only basic Iowa code requirements.

l Coordinate more efficient delivery of services, under one roof with a simple design.

l Reduce driving time for many employees.

l Provide more storage space.

l Create a professional development center where all the district's training can be conducted.

Disappointingly, no full cost analysis of operating the new campus vs. returning to the old buildings has been done. We were told such a comparison is forthcoming. But construction is scheduled to begin this spring, so of what value is such an analysis after the fact?

Meanwhile, school and the board are dealing with major state funding cuts. Depending on negotiations with the teachers union and the Legislature's final action, the tentative budget proposal cuts $4.2 million by eliminating 49 teachers and 10 custodial staff - no administrative positions. A planned evaluation of other district buildings and possible closures has yet to be launched.

Even with the cuts, the property tax rate likely will increase heftily - 12.6 percent. $4 million of the annual SILO revenue goes toward property tax relief, which continues until 2017. The board decided against diverting more in order to protect ongoing projects and avoid more borrowing.

With major financial challenges looming, the ESC campus is obliged to produce measurable improvements in the quality and efficiency of support for the district's top priority: educating our children to a level competitive with the world. Otherwise, $45 million will not have been well spent.