Carter, referendum group await public vote
next week
By Joe Pritchett
Clarion Editor
It's been a whirlwind couple of months for Linda Carter and her 'Building For Their Future'
committee, which was charged with educating the public on the space needs of the Ball-Chatham
School District and getting out the message to vote "Yes" on the referendum issue that will be before
the voters next week.
"We've tried to keep people focused on the need for a new elementary school," Carter, a retired
teacher and administrator for Ball-Chatham, stated. "We are overcrowded. We have kids being
taught in hallways and storerooms. We want to maintain our class sizes, and focus on what's best for
our children."
Carter's group had some eight to 10 speaking engagements before local groups in the past
month, getting their message out. A website was established, and education about early voting and
absentee ballots were stressed early on. With next week's vote occurring during spring break, getting
the word out was even more important.
"In talking with people, location was the biggest question," she continued. "People north of the lake
expressed a desire to have a school closer to them so that students weren't on the buses for as long."
Of course, last week, the board purchased 145 acres of ground adjacent to Glenwood High School,
nearly smack dab in the middle of the district (the actual center is a bit further east), on the north side
of Plummer and east side of Iron Bridge/Gordon Drive.
"I think I was surprised a little bit," Carter admitted. "I was thinking it might be more up off
Woodside or Toronto Road. But I do have confidence that the land acquisition committee searched
all of the options and really had the best interests of the children and district at heart. I know they
worked really hard, and the prices of land were very high."
From last fall, educating the public about this issue has been a challenge. There were initial plans
for a much grander scale of projects, and asking for property tax increases. But with the economic
issues facing the region and the country, district officials scaled back their plans to a 500-student
elementary school (with room for future expansion) paid for exclusively with district reserves.
And since the district plans to build a new structure, a public vote is required by law. Had the
district been seeking to add on to an existing building using reserves, a referendum would not be
necessary.
The school (with furnishings) is expected to cost $12.3 million, and the recent land acquisition
costs were $3.6 million. With the uncertainty surrounding where the new school would be built and
issues such as the proposed Sangamon County Sales Tax Initiative at play earlier this year, voters
and taxpayers could have been easily confused.
However, the Sales Tax Initiative is a question for another day at this point (it could be on the ballot
as early as next year).
And Carter's group has also educated the public about how the upcoming referendum is only the
first phase in a planned four phase capital projects program. Future projects could include
classroom additions to GIS and GHS, an addition to the proposed new elementary school and maybe
even a pool and fitness center at GHS or a new middle school.
Building a new elementary school will set forth several changes in the K-8 program.
Once the new school becomes ready for use (August 2011 is the estimated date now), the district
would switch to three K-4 centers (with Pre-K still at Ball). New elementary boundary lines would have
to be determined.
Glenwood Intermediate would become a grades 5-6 facility, and Glenwood Middle School would
be a 7-8 center, easing the overcrowding issues at GMS but leaving GIS still close to maximum
capacity.
The elementary schools may well be filled at or near capacity when the new one opens, especially
if enrollment continues to rise at recent rates. Supt. Bob Gillum and district officials have been up
front about that scenario from the beginning, terming this referendum as a "stopgap" solution in these
difficult economic times.
And having the new school in a centralized location with two major north/south access points close
by (Route 4 and Iron Bridge/Gordon) should help with student bus times. "Having the schools less
crowded can only help the transportation time," Carter added.
Carter's committee also talked to people about the importance of Springfield, and how folks who
live there are a huge part of the district.
"To our benefit, Springfield has additional commercial properties being built, including in places
like Prairie Crossing. We've been emphasizing that a lot."
EAV and commercial growth are vital to the school district's bottom line, and also help keep
residential property taxes down.
Asked how she thinks the vote will go next week, Carter stated, "I think it will pass. I am hoping it
gets a substantial majority. I think people will come to the realization that we need a new school."
Asked what would happen if the referendum would fail, especially when it doesn't involve a property
tax increase, Carter said, "We're in big trouble."
next week
By Joe Pritchett
Clarion Editor
It's been a whirlwind couple of months for Linda Carter and her 'Building For Their Future'
committee, which was charged with educating the public on the space needs of the Ball-Chatham
School District and getting out the message to vote "Yes" on the referendum issue that will be before
the voters next week.
"We've tried to keep people focused on the need for a new elementary school," Carter, a retired
teacher and administrator for Ball-Chatham, stated. "We are overcrowded. We have kids being
taught in hallways and storerooms. We want to maintain our class sizes, and focus on what's best for
our children."
Carter's group had some eight to 10 speaking engagements before local groups in the past
month, getting their message out. A website was established, and education about early voting and
absentee ballots were stressed early on. With next week's vote occurring during spring break, getting
the word out was even more important.
"In talking with people, location was the biggest question," she continued. "People north of the lake
expressed a desire to have a school closer to them so that students weren't on the buses for as long."
Of course, last week, the board purchased 145 acres of ground adjacent to Glenwood High School,
nearly smack dab in the middle of the district (the actual center is a bit further east), on the north side
of Plummer and east side of Iron Bridge/Gordon Drive.
"I think I was surprised a little bit," Carter admitted. "I was thinking it might be more up off
Woodside or Toronto Road. But I do have confidence that the land acquisition committee searched
all of the options and really had the best interests of the children and district at heart. I know they
worked really hard, and the prices of land were very high."
From last fall, educating the public about this issue has been a challenge. There were initial plans
for a much grander scale of projects, and asking for property tax increases. But with the economic
issues facing the region and the country, district officials scaled back their plans to a 500-student
elementary school (with room for future expansion) paid for exclusively with district reserves.
And since the district plans to build a new structure, a public vote is required by law. Had the
district been seeking to add on to an existing building using reserves, a referendum would not be
necessary.
The school (with furnishings) is expected to cost $12.3 million, and the recent land acquisition
costs were $3.6 million. With the uncertainty surrounding where the new school would be built and
issues such as the proposed Sangamon County Sales Tax Initiative at play earlier this year, voters
and taxpayers could have been easily confused.
However, the Sales Tax Initiative is a question for another day at this point (it could be on the ballot
as early as next year).
And Carter's group has also educated the public about how the upcoming referendum is only the
first phase in a planned four phase capital projects program. Future projects could include
classroom additions to GIS and GHS, an addition to the proposed new elementary school and maybe
even a pool and fitness center at GHS or a new middle school.
Building a new elementary school will set forth several changes in the K-8 program.
Once the new school becomes ready for use (August 2011 is the estimated date now), the district
would switch to three K-4 centers (with Pre-K still at Ball). New elementary boundary lines would have
to be determined.
Glenwood Intermediate would become a grades 5-6 facility, and Glenwood Middle School would
be a 7-8 center, easing the overcrowding issues at GMS but leaving GIS still close to maximum
capacity.
The elementary schools may well be filled at or near capacity when the new one opens, especially
if enrollment continues to rise at recent rates. Supt. Bob Gillum and district officials have been up
front about that scenario from the beginning, terming this referendum as a "stopgap" solution in these
difficult economic times.
And having the new school in a centralized location with two major north/south access points close
by (Route 4 and Iron Bridge/Gordon) should help with student bus times. "Having the schools less
crowded can only help the transportation time," Carter added.
Carter's committee also talked to people about the importance of Springfield, and how folks who
live there are a huge part of the district.
"To our benefit, Springfield has additional commercial properties being built, including in places
like Prairie Crossing. We've been emphasizing that a lot."
EAV and commercial growth are vital to the school district's bottom line, and also help keep
residential property taxes down.
Asked how she thinks the vote will go next week, Carter stated, "I think it will pass. I am hoping it
gets a substantial majority. I think people will come to the realization that we need a new school."
Asked what would happen if the referendum would fail, especially when it doesn't involve a property
tax increase, Carter said, "We're in big trouble."
Chatham Clarion
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Issue Date: April 2, 2009