DANVILLE, Iowa — The Danville School District once again is asking for the public's approval to take out a general obligation bond — this time for $8.9 million — to be used for school remodeling, improvements and updates.
District residents have rejected two general obligation bond proposals in recent years, each of which was for about $4.1 million. In 2016, 51.45% of voters opposed the bond. Iowa school districts must secure a super majority voter approval of 60% to be able to issue GO bonds.
Danville's infrastructure needs have amplified since the last referendum, however, and with increasing class sizes due to open enrollment, students and staff are growing increasingly cramped in outdated classrooms.
"Many teachers are struggling to use research-based methods because of lack of space in their rooms and number of students in the room," Danville Education Association President Cass Macans wrote in a letter posted to the district's website. "We have teachers using every possible corner of the building and then some."
The district serves 228 open enrolled students this year, up from last year's open enrollment population of 208, and bringing the total number of students to 730. The money each open enrolled student brings with them to the district goes toward teacher salaries, curriculum, learning supports and instructional materials. Superintendent Thomas Ward said the district needs to be prepared to accommodate an average class size of 53.
If approved, the bond would enable the addition of three classrooms at the junior and senior high school, renovation of the Ag/Industrial Tech building, relocation of the art and music classrooms, the addition of a new office, conference room, upgraded security in the office and the renovation of two other areas into classroom space.
At the elementary building — where several classrooms are separated only by partitions instead of walls, allowing sound to carry easily from classroom to classroom — the bond would allow the addition of 6 1/2 classrooms as well as renovation of the open classrooms. It also would be used to renovate a teacher workroom into classroom space, relocate the playground area, add 37 new spaces to the elementary parking lot and construct an upgraded, secure entrance for the elementary building.
The tax impact of an additional $2 per $1,000 taxable valuation, meaning a $50,000 home would see an annual increase of $45.92, or a monthly increase of $3.83.
Agricultural land owners would pay an additional $2.13 per acre per year.
