PPEL vote to be held Feb. 7, final public meeting Feb. 2

By Molly Moser

Superintendent Shane Wahls answered some tough questions during a series of public meetings about the Feb. 7 PPEL (physical plant and equipment levy) vote, which if approved would provide the Clayton Ridge School District with an additional of $2.5 million over the next ten years earmarked specifically for building maintenance.

Asked whether calling the school’s issues critical was a fear tactic, Wahls said, “I do want to make it clear that there are some urgent problems that we have. I was walking though the buildings with an architect this evening in Guttenberg and he commented, ‘You can only put Band-Aids on things for so long.’ That’s very true and is often the case with the funding that we have.”

He described maintenance issues just in the last two weeks, including steam leaks in the elementary school HVAC system that have resulted in permanent furnace shut-off in the north stairwell and upper level hallway and a valve requiring repair beneath a first floor classroom. Recent heavy rains have also caused additional leaks in the roof of the 1903 building.

Currently, the PPEL is providing the school district with about $2 million, so a 67¢ raise over the next 10 years would increase available funds up to $4.5 million. Wahls contrasted this amount with the $10 million failed bond referendum in 2015. “We’re not asking to change our classrooms into 21st century learning environments. We’re talking about the basics of what it takes to maintain facilities,” said the superintendent. “If we have trouble passing an ask for $2.5 million, I’m not sure what the public would support. That concerns me.”

Over the past 11 years, the school has spent over $9 million on maintenance, addressing fire safety and security, accessibility, infrastructure, energy efficiency, instructional equipment, transportation, and other repairs in both Guttenberg and Garnavillo. These repairs, including new roofs on both Garnavillo buildings and a new HVAC system in the middle school building, were funded by PPEL and sales tax monies. 

The district is currently debt free, and an approved PPEL increase would allow the school to borrow up to $4.5 million over the next decade. If the February vote did not pass, votes could be held again in April, June, September and December of 2017. The current PPEL expires in June of 2018. “If this doesn’t pass, on June 30 2018, we can’t borrow any money from anywhere,” said Dave Schlueter, school business manager. 

Wahls and Schlueter reported that by the end of the current fiscal year, the school projects a balance of $500,000 – 550,000 for projects. Plumbing and pipe renovation in the elementary would cost a minimum of $272,000, and replacement of the outdated switchgear in the middle school could add up to $111,000 to that amount – so the school would potentially be able to fund those two priority projects if the PPEL does not pass. 

“Some would ask why you don’t just do what we can right now and then try to raise the PPEL?” quizzed one participant. “We can borrow against the funding that we have access to now. We could do the project,” Wahls answered. “I think the point is that here’s one of those priorities rising to the top. Whether we pass a PPEL election or not, we are all going to work together to prioritize the projects we can actually do.”

Total projected costs for repairs, upgrades and renovations are between $5 million and $7.8 millon, depending on price when projects are bid. “The PPEL would give us $4.5 million, so we still have to prioritize as we go,” Wahls explained. 

The school district is legally required to bid out any project over $135,000. Any project exceeding $55,000 must include plans and specifications prepared by a licensed engineer or architect, who must calculate the estimated total cost of a proposed public improvement before bidding may commence. The approval process required for the construction of school buildings requires that plans and specifications for all new school buildings, building additions, alterations and renovations used for school functions must be submitted to the Iowa State building Code Bureau, a division of the State Fire Marshal’s office. According to data from a facility review conducted by independent architects and Estes Construction, the most financially feasible option for the next three decades is to operate both Guttenberg and Garnavillo facilities. 

One concerned citizen pointed out enrollment projections, which Wahls projected to decrease by 70 students in the next decade. Questions about the potential for a centralized school in Garnavillo serving Elkader, Garnavillo and Guttenberg area students were raised as well. “The districts in the area financially are sitting pretty well as far as being able, long term, to pay teacher salaries and fund curriculum, though that is still a challenge due to limited state funding,” said Wahls, noting that because of this any potential merger is 10-15 years away. School maintenance projects, on the other hand, are funded strictly by property tax and sales tax. 

“Clayton Ridge isn’t going to take all the kids and pack them off to Central. It’s not economically feasible, nor is the length of time for transportation. There’s going to have to be an in between point,” Wahls pointed out. “Each community, whether a merger happens or not, is going to need a facility for kids and you have to have maintained it all along. If you don’t, who’s going to want to partner with you?

“All of these repairs still need to be done, because not all of Clayton Ridge can fit in Garnavillo,” Wahls went on with regard to a hypothetical merger. 

One attendee asked whether a private investor might purchase the Guttenberg facilities, with income being used to build a new school in Garnavillo. “The school has never been approached by a developer,” said Schluter. Another question was raised regarding the value of the Garnavillo property given to the fire department last year. “The property, with that building on it, was a liability. We would have had to pay $200,000 to have it torn down and it wouldn’t have brought any revenue,” Schlueter answered. “We felt it was a better use of public funds to go toward financing another public project.”

Garnavillo resident Alicia Helle, who is an administrator at Keystone AEA and a parent of two CRCSD students, pointed out, “These are our kids and our facilities. These are all of our students. We’re all responsible for this education. We’re all responsible for them.”

Schluter and Wahls have offered to field any questions about the problems, projected costs, priorities, and potential tax increases. For more information, call the school at 563-252-2341.