South Washington County Schools on Thursday presented a 10-year plan to the school board that addresses overcrowding and other facility needs related to student growth.
The price tag for these growing pains? $462 million.
“Anyone driving around in our community could see that construction never slowed down throughout the pandemic. And so we are in a place where we really have to take action to alleviate our overcrowded schools, especially as we look out over the next 10 years,” says Pepe Barton, spokesperson for the South Washington County Schools (Independent School District 833).
The plan also proposes boundary changes, although families would not be affected until at least 2025.
What’s next?
Later this month, there will be an in-person community information session as well as a virtual session.
The public can attend two community information sessions to get more information. An in-person session will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. March 15 at Oltman Middle School, 6625 Goodview Ave. S., Cottage Grove. A virtual information session will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. March 17 via Zoom; get the link at Sowashco.org/facilityplanning.
The school district will also share the 10-year facility package during school board workshops and business meetings through April 21. View the schedule at Sowashco.org/about-us/school-board.
BOND REFERENDUM
The school board will vote on the 10-year plan April 21. If approved, a bond referendum would be presented to voters via a special election Aug. 9. If passed, this would mean that the district would be authorized to raise construction funding through the sale of bonds.
For a home worth $300,000, the tax impact of the plan would mean an additional $23 in property taxes a month, or $280 more a year for that homeowner, according to the school district.
This funding request is separate from a recently approved operating levy for classrooms, instruction and other school operating costs. That levy, approved by voters in November, was tied to inflation, the school district says, and is providing operational stability in order to now focus on growth and facility needs.
The school district spans parts or all of Cottage Grove, Newport, St. Paul Park, Woodbury, Afton, Denmark and Grey Cloud Island Townships. The district has three traditional high schools, one alternative high school, four middle schools and 16 elementary schools. Within 10 years, the school district projects 8,000 new homes, 3,500 new students and 15 schools over capacity.
In 2015, voters approved construction funding for a new middle school, which opened as Oltman Middle School in 2018, but rejected plans for improvements to the high schools and several elementary schools. More recently, the facility-planning process was put on hold for one year due to the pandemic. The process restarted in March 2021.
HIGHLIGHTS
Here are some highlights of the 10-year plan, introduced to the board by a long-range facility leadership team:
- Modernizes classroom space, including shared learning spaces and creation of multipurpose spaces for online learning (at the high schools).
- Provides needed renovations (such as common areas, bathrooms, kitchens and cafeterias).
- Addresses transportation and operational facility needs.
- Provides dedicated space for early learning, special education and the South Washington Alternative High School.
- Includes plans for repurposing existing buildings (two elementary schools in Cottage Grove will get new buildings under this plan)
- Land purchases for future growth.
More information, including plans for each school in the district, are at Sowashco.org/facilityplanning.