SCHOOLS UPGRADE PLAN UNVEILED

In 1991, Bob Fox got involved in a school district planning committee looking at facilities. Five years later the Cape Girardeau School District has presented a long-range plan that Fox believes addresses building needs, plus a whole lot more.

"It sure feels good to see this on paper," said Fox, the president of the Board of Education.

The long-range plan was unveiled Monday at the school board meeting. For the next month, board members want people to learn about the proposal, ask questions and offer suggestions. At its Nov. 18 meeting, the board will adopt the long-range plan.

The proposal calls for a 69-cent property tax increase to fund construction of a new vocational school, a new elementary school and a new high school, plus an addition and extensive remodeling.

The board hasn't settled on locations for the buildings. Fox said property negotiations are under way.

Copies of the 32-page plan were available at the meeting. Fox said three-page summaries of the information are also in the works.

The plan is divided into three key areas: programs, facilities and financing. It includes 14 goals drawn from suggestions from public meetings, surveys and committee discussions held over the past year.

"We feel most everything suggested can fit within one of these 14 areas," said Superintendent Dan Tallent.

The plan lists ways to implement the 14 goals, dates when projects would start and projected costs. "One nice thing is that a lot of these suggestions can be implemented at no cost right away," Fox said.

Tallent said, "The facilities are driven by the programs and the grade configuration we would like to have at the end of this."

If approved, the district will move in stages to kindergarten through fourth-grade elementary schools, a fifth- and sixth-grade center at the junior high building, a seventh- and eighth-grade center at the old high school, a new ninth- through 12th-grade high school and a new vocational school.

Renovations would be made to Alma Schrader, Clippard, Franklin and Jefferson. Nine rooms would be added to Jefferson.

Eventually May Greene, Washington and L.J. Schultz would be closed.

"We will not move off and leave them," Tallent said. The buildings would be sold, put to a new use or demolished.

The old vocational school would be renovated to house districtwide programs like Parents as Teachers, centralized maintenance, warehouses, and district administrative offices.

The plan calls for three phases. In the first phase, a vocational school and elementary school would be built. Renovations, including the addition, would be done at elementary schools, and renovations at the junior high and high school would begin.

The second phase calls for construction of a high school, completion of the renovations at junior high and the old high school and changes of grade configuration to K-4, 5-6, 7-8 and 9-12. The third phase, if needed, would build another elementary school.

The plan is financed also in two phases. In the first phase, voters would be asked to approve a 69-cent tax increase by voting on two items. The vote is proposed for April. Voters would be asked to approval sale of $14 million in bonds. A 30-cent tax levy would be needed to pay off those bonds. In addition, the district will ask for a 39-cent tax increase by asking voters to waive the district's Proposition C rollback.

In the second phase, voters would be asked to approve a second $14 million bond issue. This bond could be paid off without raising taxes again.

"The initial tax increase will carry us all the way through this plan, even the third phase," Tallent said.

The payback of bonds is staged over 24 years. "Current users and future users will all pay," he said.

Eventually, the 30-cent tax would be eliminated if bonds were paid off. The 39-cent portion of the tax increase would remain forever.

The 39-cents, Tallent explained, would initially help pay construction costs. After buildings are finished, the money would be used to pay for programs and services in those buildings and for renovations of the facilities.

In estimating the tax rate needed to pay back bonds, Tallent said, a conservative 2.5 percent annual growth in assessed valuation was calculated. If property values grow faster, the project could be done faster or the tax rate could be lower.

The district has traveled a rocky road over the past five years, including three failed ballot issues and the dismissal of a superintendent.

"I started with the 1991 facilities committee," Fox said, "and improving facilities was one of my goals in running for the board. It's exciting to see all this written down on paper."