Muskegon (Mich.) district says May 5 bond election is too important to delay
The coronavirus pandemic has led some school districts in Michigan to postpone bond elections that had been scheduled for May 5, but the Muskegon district says its $105 million bond proposal is too critical to put off.
Muskegon Superintendent Matthew Cortez says If the proposals were pushed back from the May election, construction projects would be delayed by over a year, according to MLive.com.
“This bond is that important to our district,” Cortez says. “We have a responsibility to look to the future. The decisions we’re making now are decisions that will stand for 30 years. And that’s not something you can easily put onto the back burner.”
If approved, the two-part bond request would result in the shuttering of several schools, construction of a new middle school and athletic facilities upgrades.
Pushing back the ballot questions to the August or November elections would delay plans for the new middle school by more than 18 months, Cortez says.
Muskegon is asking voters to consider two school bond questions. Proposal 1 would renew an existing 7.36-mill property tax for academic and building improvements. The proposal would generate $93 million for projects such as the middle school, which would open in 2023.
Proposal 2 is dependent upon Proposal 1 passing and focuses on security and sports facilities. It would generate about $11 million for the district.
Cortez says the district can’t afford to wait until the next election.
“With the money we’re putting into maintaining some of our buildings right now, the cost it’s putting onto us fiscally, those are taking opportunities away from the educational arena," he says.
Cortez said he believes this election has the potential of getting the “largest voter turnout in history” because of the push for mail-in ballots. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced in March that the state will mail out absentee applications to all voters for the May 5 election to encourage mail-in voting during the coronavirus crisis.
The superintendent says he’s also worried that if the bond proposals were pushed back to later elections, the district’s request would be “drowned out” by the presidential election.
If the bonds are approved, the district would be able to upgrade air control systems in school buildings. With the schools’ existing systems, fresh air is brought into classrooms once a day, Cortez says. With the new system the district wants to install, fresh air would be cycled into the classrooms four to five times an hour.
“Think of the health difference, and the air quality difference,” he says. "These buildings are beautiful and historic, but they haven’t been retrofitted for current technology or lighting or air filtration systems.
“How do I say that I’m willing to delay that for 18 months longer? How can I allow kids to exist in an environment that isn’t the most advantageous to their learning?"
