USD 480 2014 Bond FAQ SHEET
USD 480 2014 Bond FAQ SHEET Voting Information When is the school bond election? Tuesday, April 8, 2014 Polls Open 7:00 a.m. till 7:00 p.m.
When is the voter registration deadline? You must be registered to vote by Tuesday, March 18, 2014 to vote in the school bond election. Voter registration applications are available in the Liberal USD 480 schools or on line at www.sewardcountyks.org For more information, call Seward County Clerk’s Office at 620-626-3355. Seward County Clerk 515 N Washington Ste 100 Liberal, KS 67901
Can I vote early? Early voting is available at the Seward County Administration Office, located at 515 N Washington in Liberal on: March 299 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 31 thru April 4- 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 59 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 78 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Can I vote absentee? Yes. The deadline to receive absentee applications is April 4. Ballots must be returned by close of polls, 7 pm - on April 8. Call the Seward County Clerk’s office at 620-626-3355 for more information on absentee voting.
Do I have to have a Kansas Driver’s license to register to vote or to vote? You do not need a Kansas driver’s license in order to register or to vote. You do, however, need to have a proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, in order to register to vote for the first time and a document for proof of where you live such as a utility bill. When voting, you can use any government issued ID such as a school employee ID.
Where can I vote? We will have one polling location for the school bond election on April 8. You can vote at the Seward County Events Center: 810 Stadium Ave. Liberal, KS 67901 620-624-3743 Tuesday, April 8, 2014 from 7:00 a.m. till 7:00 p.m. or see information above on absentee and early voting.
Why are there two questions on the April 8 ballot? USD 480 has proposed a solution that utilizes three funding sources: a ½ cent sales tax; a bond election to raise property tax; and Kansas State aid. The ½ cent sales tax and bond election for property tax requires a vote of the public. Both must be approved by voters to allow the District to implement the proposed solution.
Who can vote in the school bond issue election to raise property tax? Anyone who lives within the USD 480 School District boundary and is registered to vote by March 18 can vote in the school bond election.
Who can vote in the ½ cent city sales tax election? Because the city has proposed the city sales tax, you must live within the City of Liberal boundary to vote on the sales tax portion.
I live within the USD 480 School District boundary but not within the City of Liberal boundary. Can I vote in this election? Anyone who lives within the USD 480 School District boundary can vote in the school bond election, and anyone who lives within the City of Liberal boundary can vote on the sales tax portion. If you live within the District boundary but not within the City boundary you cannot vote on the city sales tax portion, you can only vote on the school bond issue portion.
Financial Related Questions If the bond issue passes, and the sales tax question fails, how will the project be paid for? Both questions on the ballot must pass. If either question fails, the proposed solution will not be implemented.
Will you have to hire more administrators to staff the proposed solution? USD 480 has no intentions of hiring additional administration due to the bond project.
The state aid that you keep bringing up is tax dollars that I am paying anyway. How does that benefit me? State aid derives from tax dollars you have paid to Kansas, but are currently benefitting other school districts around the state. Those dollars are not currently coming back to our community. If the bond passes and the District is able to utilize Kansas State aid, more of your current tax dollars will return to your community. Your state tax will not increase due to the bond.
What is state aid? State aid is the equalization factor the state of Kansas uses to consider the wealth of the district. It is a comparison among other school districts throughout the state. Using the current calculation, USD 480 will receive 49 percent state aid, meaning 49 percent of the proposed solution would be funded through state aid.
Is it true that the state legislature is trying to eliminate state aid? There has been a bill, SB 305, introduced to do away with state aid after June 30, 2014. If that occurs, any bond issues approved by voters after June 30, 2014 would not receive state aid and would be funded in full by local taxpayers.
What happens if state aid does go away and our bond issue passes? If the bond passes on April 8, state aid will continue for the life of the bond.
What happens if sales tax collection goes up and more is collected than estimated? If the ½ cent sales tax collects more funds than projected, the mill levy could be lowered or the bonds could be paid off at a faster rate.
We already pay too much to the school district in property taxes. We pay way more than other districts. Why should we vote to increase that? USD 480’s total mill levy collected ranks 251st out of 286 total school districts in the state of Kansas for 2012-13. Only 35 districts have a lower mill levy rate. Out of all 6A and 5A school districts, USD 480 is the lowest.
How much are you paying the Architect, Bond Company, and Construction Company you have hired? All three of those companies are currently providing their services pending a successful bond initiative. If the bond is unsuccessful, the district does not pay for the fees associated with their effort to facilitate the planning process.
Why is the Board of Education proposing a bond election now? The District, after hearing from parents, teachers and the community, has outlined the need for new and improved facilities. The need will not go away. Therefore the Board of Education approved moving forward with the long-range plan to capitalize on state and local partnership funds. The April 8, 2014 bond vote is the District’s chance to secure 2013-2014 state partnership dollars to fund up to 49 percent of the plan. The City of Liberal is also allowing a vote for ½ cent sales tax to be used to fund 22% of the plan. Today’s economy also creates a highly competitive construction market which can result in lower costs of construction and the District will be able to take advantage of low interest rates on the sale of the bonds.
How much of the bond will be spent on pre-kindergarten? Zero bond dollars are dedicated to pre-kindergarten needs.
Will the bond create any economic impact in Liberal? Based off an economic impact report prepared by Impact DataSource, out of Austin, TX, the following are estimated for Liberal and Seward County:
Direct jobs created each year of construction Indirect jobs created each year of construction Total jobs created each year of construction Local taxable sales created Direct economic impact on Liberal’s economy Indirect economic impact on Liberal’s economy Total economic impact on Liberal’s economy
344 264 608 $22.9 million $95.89 million $94.9 million $190.8 million
Facility Related Questions Why can’t you just add classrooms? Adding classrooms is an option in some locations, but does not solve all of the challenges in the district.
What are your plans for schools and buildings that are not shown on the solution? The following are the most recent ideas uses for the schools. Garfield- This building will be utilized to serve the current Focus and Alternative school students that currently attend in a section of the metal grounds building and portable southwest of the current high school. Lincoln- This building will be utilized as a Pre-K building. Some of the current Pre-K students that attend school in the portable buildings on the Washington Elementary School grounds will be moved into this building. MacArthur- This building will be removed once the new elementary school located on its current property is open. McDermott- In consultation with local realtors, the most likely solution for this property is to eliminate the building and sell the land given the location of the property. McKinley- This building will be utilized as central office. The district will be able to combine the current central office staff and the education service center staff into one location. Southlawn- This building will be utilized as a second Pre-K building. The remaining current Pre-K students that attend school in the portable buildings on the Washington Elementary School grounds will attend this building. Washington- In consultation with local realtors, given the commercial value of the location of this school, it is recommended that all of the portable structures be removed and the building and land be marketed for sale.
South Middle- A very popular idea that came from the Vision Team and community input, was to have a conversation with the city to explore the possibility of the building becoming a recreational center for the community. The gym, commons area, and administration area were constructed in 2001 and are valuable assets to the community. The original pod areas would be removed and community could utilize the rest of the property as well. Central Office and Education Service Center- Again in consultation with the local realtors, they felt like these two properties had commercial value. Once the staff was able to relocate to McKinley, these two buildings could be marketed for sale. Any proceeds from the sale of any property would be able to help offset any costs associated with repurposing of McKinley, Garfield, Lincoln, and Southlawn. The district will make every effort to ensure no building goes unused.
Will all portable buildings go away? The intent of the long-range strategic plan is to provide state-of-the-art classrooms for all Liberal students, and therefore eliminate portable buildings.
What thoughts of security planning have gone into architectural diagrams of the facilities? New site circulation routes with separate bus and car drop off areas will be planned at all schools for safer pick up and drop off of students. All schools will have a single, clearly identifiable entry to allow school administrators to better monitor visitors, students and staff entering schools. Locating offices at the main school entry will require all visitors to check in upon arrival. New school designs will provide adequate site lighting to eliminate obstructed views and dark spaces around school exteriors. New school designs will incorporate features to avoid isolation that is present with a single/double door entry system into public restrooms. Where possible, designers will incorporate transparent materials and consider circulation design to maximize visibility around stairways.
How will traffic be managed on the city streets in the mornings and afternoon? During the design phases, off street / on street circulation and parking will be evaluated and designed into the new locations. Current locations will be evaluated and proposed changes will be made in coordination with the local jurisdictions to provide safe off street / on street drop off and efficient circulation patterns to alleviate traffic and parking congestion.
When will the official digging begin? We estimate digging will begin in fall of 2014. It may be possible to see construction earlier depending on site availability, market trends and building plan development. The plan is to open the two middle schools and the south elementary school for the school year 2016-17. The other two elementary schools would be ready for the school year 2017-18.
Where are the 5 new schools going to be located? One new elementary school will be on the current MacArthur Elementary site. The district owns enough land to accommodate construction of a new school while the current school is uninterrupted. A new elementary school will be located on approximately 14 acres on the corner of Calvert and 11th Street. The north side middle school will be located on approximately 36 acres on the west side of Western across from the South Holly and Western intersection. The south side middle school and the south side elementary school will be located on approximately 44 acres between Hickory Street and Griffith Avenue. This is just southeast of the Hampton Inn and south of Trailers and Trails on Pancake Blvd.
How much additional classroom space will be added to the district? The District will be adding just over 150,000 square feet of additional educational space.
How will West Middle School be incorporated into the High School Campus? The District will gather input from Liberal High School administration and staff to evaluate the best use of the West Middle School building on the high school campus.
Educational and Staff Related Questions Why is all day kindergarten necessary? Research done for the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, and the National Center for Education Statistics, (2004) Full-day and half-day kindergarten in the United States: Findings from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, kindergarten class of 1998-99 finds that children in full-day kindergarten classes make greater academic gains in both reading and mathematics compared to those in half-day classes. Currently only 13% of students in the State of Kansas do not have all day kindergarten. In full day kindergarten classrooms, teachers have more time to get to know kids and identify and address their learning challenges early - saving money and resources over the long term and increasing the odds that children will be successful later in their school career. Full day kindergarten helps make sure that students build the strong base of learning they will need to succeed throughout school and life.
Don’t we already have all day pre-kindergarten (pre-school) and kindergarten? Currently, the District has 2 of 24 kindergarten classes attend all day. All pre-kindergarten programs are half day.
Why is it important to eliminate a building transition? Change is difficult, even in the best of circumstances. Eliminating a transition will foster a stable relationship between school and home as well as between students and teachers. Research done for the College of Education, at Ohio University, shows that schools with broader grade-span configurations produce higher achievement than schools with narrower grade-span configurations. Why are you building schools with 4 sections of each grade at the elementary level? By building elementary buildings with 4 sections we can return to the neighborhood school concept the community desires. In addition, by having 4 teachers at each grade level we improve collaboration for the teachers.
How are you going to distribute staff to the new locations? The final decision has not been determined at this time. However, administration will receive input from the staff on this issue.
When is the voter registration deadline? You must be registered to vote by Tuesday, March 18, 2014 to vote in the school bond election. Voter registration applications are available in the Liberal USD 480 schools or on line at www.sewardcountyks.org For more information, call Seward County Clerk’s Office at 620-626-3355. Seward County Clerk 515 N Washington Ste 100 Liberal, KS 67901
Can I vote early? Early voting is available at the Seward County Administration Office, located at 515 N Washington in Liberal on: March 299 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 31 thru April 4- 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 59 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 78 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Can I vote absentee? Yes. The deadline to receive absentee applications is April 4. Ballots must be returned by close of polls, 7 pm - on April 8. Call the Seward County Clerk’s office at 620-626-3355 for more information on absentee voting.
Do I have to have a Kansas Driver’s license to register to vote or to vote? You do not need a Kansas driver’s license in order to register or to vote. You do, however, need to have a proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, in order to register to vote for the first time and a document for proof of where you live such as a utility bill. When voting, you can use any government issued ID such as a school employee ID.
Where can I vote? We will have one polling location for the school bond election on April 8. You can vote at the Seward County Events Center: 810 Stadium Ave. Liberal, KS 67901 620-624-3743 Tuesday, April 8, 2014 from 7:00 a.m. till 7:00 p.m. or see information above on absentee and early voting.
Why are there two questions on the April 8 ballot? USD 480 has proposed a solution that utilizes three funding sources: a ½ cent sales tax; a bond election to raise property tax; and Kansas State aid. The ½ cent sales tax and bond election for property tax requires a vote of the public. Both must be approved by voters to allow the District to implement the proposed solution.
Who can vote in the school bond issue election to raise property tax? Anyone who lives within the USD 480 School District boundary and is registered to vote by March 18 can vote in the school bond election.
Who can vote in the ½ cent city sales tax election? Because the city has proposed the city sales tax, you must live within the City of Liberal boundary to vote on the sales tax portion.
I live within the USD 480 School District boundary but not within the City of Liberal boundary. Can I vote in this election? Anyone who lives within the USD 480 School District boundary can vote in the school bond election, and anyone who lives within the City of Liberal boundary can vote on the sales tax portion. If you live within the District boundary but not within the City boundary you cannot vote on the city sales tax portion, you can only vote on the school bond issue portion.
Financial Related Questions If the bond issue passes, and the sales tax question fails, how will the project be paid for? Both questions on the ballot must pass. If either question fails, the proposed solution will not be implemented.
Will you have to hire more administrators to staff the proposed solution? USD 480 has no intentions of hiring additional administration due to the bond project.
The state aid that you keep bringing up is tax dollars that I am paying anyway. How does that benefit me? State aid derives from tax dollars you have paid to Kansas, but are currently benefitting other school districts around the state. Those dollars are not currently coming back to our community. If the bond passes and the District is able to utilize Kansas State aid, more of your current tax dollars will return to your community. Your state tax will not increase due to the bond.
What is state aid? State aid is the equalization factor the state of Kansas uses to consider the wealth of the district. It is a comparison among other school districts throughout the state. Using the current calculation, USD 480 will receive 49 percent state aid, meaning 49 percent of the proposed solution would be funded through state aid.
Is it true that the state legislature is trying to eliminate state aid? There has been a bill, SB 305, introduced to do away with state aid after June 30, 2014. If that occurs, any bond issues approved by voters after June 30, 2014 would not receive state aid and would be funded in full by local taxpayers.
What happens if state aid does go away and our bond issue passes? If the bond passes on April 8, state aid will continue for the life of the bond.
What happens if sales tax collection goes up and more is collected than estimated? If the ½ cent sales tax collects more funds than projected, the mill levy could be lowered or the bonds could be paid off at a faster rate.
We already pay too much to the school district in property taxes. We pay way more than other districts. Why should we vote to increase that? USD 480’s total mill levy collected ranks 251st out of 286 total school districts in the state of Kansas for 2012-13. Only 35 districts have a lower mill levy rate. Out of all 6A and 5A school districts, USD 480 is the lowest.
How much are you paying the Architect, Bond Company, and Construction Company you have hired? All three of those companies are currently providing their services pending a successful bond initiative. If the bond is unsuccessful, the district does not pay for the fees associated with their effort to facilitate the planning process.
Why is the Board of Education proposing a bond election now? The District, after hearing from parents, teachers and the community, has outlined the need for new and improved facilities. The need will not go away. Therefore the Board of Education approved moving forward with the long-range plan to capitalize on state and local partnership funds. The April 8, 2014 bond vote is the District’s chance to secure 2013-2014 state partnership dollars to fund up to 49 percent of the plan. The City of Liberal is also allowing a vote for ½ cent sales tax to be used to fund 22% of the plan. Today’s economy also creates a highly competitive construction market which can result in lower costs of construction and the District will be able to take advantage of low interest rates on the sale of the bonds.
How much of the bond will be spent on pre-kindergarten? Zero bond dollars are dedicated to pre-kindergarten needs.
Will the bond create any economic impact in Liberal? Based off an economic impact report prepared by Impact DataSource, out of Austin, TX, the following are estimated for Liberal and Seward County:
Direct jobs created each year of construction Indirect jobs created each year of construction Total jobs created each year of construction Local taxable sales created Direct economic impact on Liberal’s economy Indirect economic impact on Liberal’s economy Total economic impact on Liberal’s economy
344 264 608 $22.9 million $95.89 million $94.9 million $190.8 million
Facility Related Questions Why can’t you just add classrooms? Adding classrooms is an option in some locations, but does not solve all of the challenges in the district.
What are your plans for schools and buildings that are not shown on the solution? The following are the most recent ideas uses for the schools. Garfield- This building will be utilized to serve the current Focus and Alternative school students that currently attend in a section of the metal grounds building and portable southwest of the current high school. Lincoln- This building will be utilized as a Pre-K building. Some of the current Pre-K students that attend school in the portable buildings on the Washington Elementary School grounds will be moved into this building. MacArthur- This building will be removed once the new elementary school located on its current property is open. McDermott- In consultation with local realtors, the most likely solution for this property is to eliminate the building and sell the land given the location of the property. McKinley- This building will be utilized as central office. The district will be able to combine the current central office staff and the education service center staff into one location. Southlawn- This building will be utilized as a second Pre-K building. The remaining current Pre-K students that attend school in the portable buildings on the Washington Elementary School grounds will attend this building. Washington- In consultation with local realtors, given the commercial value of the location of this school, it is recommended that all of the portable structures be removed and the building and land be marketed for sale.
South Middle- A very popular idea that came from the Vision Team and community input, was to have a conversation with the city to explore the possibility of the building becoming a recreational center for the community. The gym, commons area, and administration area were constructed in 2001 and are valuable assets to the community. The original pod areas would be removed and community could utilize the rest of the property as well. Central Office and Education Service Center- Again in consultation with the local realtors, they felt like these two properties had commercial value. Once the staff was able to relocate to McKinley, these two buildings could be marketed for sale. Any proceeds from the sale of any property would be able to help offset any costs associated with repurposing of McKinley, Garfield, Lincoln, and Southlawn. The district will make every effort to ensure no building goes unused.
Will all portable buildings go away? The intent of the long-range strategic plan is to provide state-of-the-art classrooms for all Liberal students, and therefore eliminate portable buildings.
What thoughts of security planning have gone into architectural diagrams of the facilities? New site circulation routes with separate bus and car drop off areas will be planned at all schools for safer pick up and drop off of students. All schools will have a single, clearly identifiable entry to allow school administrators to better monitor visitors, students and staff entering schools. Locating offices at the main school entry will require all visitors to check in upon arrival. New school designs will provide adequate site lighting to eliminate obstructed views and dark spaces around school exteriors. New school designs will incorporate features to avoid isolation that is present with a single/double door entry system into public restrooms. Where possible, designers will incorporate transparent materials and consider circulation design to maximize visibility around stairways.
How will traffic be managed on the city streets in the mornings and afternoon? During the design phases, off street / on street circulation and parking will be evaluated and designed into the new locations. Current locations will be evaluated and proposed changes will be made in coordination with the local jurisdictions to provide safe off street / on street drop off and efficient circulation patterns to alleviate traffic and parking congestion.
When will the official digging begin? We estimate digging will begin in fall of 2014. It may be possible to see construction earlier depending on site availability, market trends and building plan development. The plan is to open the two middle schools and the south elementary school for the school year 2016-17. The other two elementary schools would be ready for the school year 2017-18.
Where are the 5 new schools going to be located? One new elementary school will be on the current MacArthur Elementary site. The district owns enough land to accommodate construction of a new school while the current school is uninterrupted. A new elementary school will be located on approximately 14 acres on the corner of Calvert and 11th Street. The north side middle school will be located on approximately 36 acres on the west side of Western across from the South Holly and Western intersection. The south side middle school and the south side elementary school will be located on approximately 44 acres between Hickory Street and Griffith Avenue. This is just southeast of the Hampton Inn and south of Trailers and Trails on Pancake Blvd.
How much additional classroom space will be added to the district? The District will be adding just over 150,000 square feet of additional educational space.
How will West Middle School be incorporated into the High School Campus? The District will gather input from Liberal High School administration and staff to evaluate the best use of the West Middle School building on the high school campus.
Educational and Staff Related Questions Why is all day kindergarten necessary? Research done for the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, and the National Center for Education Statistics, (2004) Full-day and half-day kindergarten in the United States: Findings from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, kindergarten class of 1998-99 finds that children in full-day kindergarten classes make greater academic gains in both reading and mathematics compared to those in half-day classes. Currently only 13% of students in the State of Kansas do not have all day kindergarten. In full day kindergarten classrooms, teachers have more time to get to know kids and identify and address their learning challenges early - saving money and resources over the long term and increasing the odds that children will be successful later in their school career. Full day kindergarten helps make sure that students build the strong base of learning they will need to succeed throughout school and life.
Don’t we already have all day pre-kindergarten (pre-school) and kindergarten? Currently, the District has 2 of 24 kindergarten classes attend all day. All pre-kindergarten programs are half day.
Why is it important to eliminate a building transition? Change is difficult, even in the best of circumstances. Eliminating a transition will foster a stable relationship between school and home as well as between students and teachers. Research done for the College of Education, at Ohio University, shows that schools with broader grade-span configurations produce higher achievement than schools with narrower grade-span configurations. Why are you building schools with 4 sections of each grade at the elementary level? By building elementary buildings with 4 sections we can return to the neighborhood school concept the community desires. In addition, by having 4 teachers at each grade level we improve collaboration for the teachers.
How are you going to distribute staff to the new locations? The final decision has not been determined at this time. However, administration will receive input from the staff on this issue.
