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Clintonville seeks public input

Elementary school survey due Oct. 10

By Bert Lehman


Residents of the Clintonville School District have until Oct. 10 to voice their opinion about what the district should do regarding its elementary school facility.

Clintonville Superintendent Tom O’Toole informed the school board at its meeting Monday, Sept. 26 that the survey asking for input from the community has been mailed. The survey was addressed to “Postal Customer” and not addressed to specific residents, he added.

If a resident didn’t receive a survey, they can contact the school to request one. He said if a second survey is needed for another resident in the household, the district can be contacted for that also.

Staff members in the district received the survey via email. O’Toole said those results will be tabulated separately from the surveys sent to residents.

“We’re encouraging everyone to fill that out,” O’Toole said.

He added that School Perceptions, the company conducting the survey, plans to attend the Oct. 24 school board meeting to present the final results of the survey.

Just shy of 5,000 surveys were mailed to residents.

The survey
There are two ways for residents to take the survey. They can fill out the paper copy and mail it to School Perception in Slinger. Or they can take the survey online. A survey access number is on each paper survey that was mailed. That access number can be used to take the survey online.

The survey includes questions to obtain information about the person filling out the survey as well as questions about what is important to them regarding planning criteria.

In addition, the survey includes information about the district’s debt. The final debt payment for the high school and recreation center will be paid in 2022. Included with the survey is a chart showing how new debt can be structured in a way that would increase taxes for the first five years of any borrowing for elementary school remodeling or a new facility, and then taxes would declining after that, once the high school debt is paid. A referendum would be needed to approve that.

Residents have two options to choose from — renovate Rexford-Longfellow Elementary School or building a new school.

The renovating option includes two options to choose from.

The first option is to renovate the elementary school, but maintain the 1918 portion of the building complex. The estimated cost of this option is $23.7 million.

The option includes renovating the interior of the 1918 portion of the building while preserving most of the exterior. The portion of the building complex built in 1956 and 1992 would be demolished, as well as a small portion of the building built in 1964. The major building systems would be upgraded, and traffic flow and parking improved.

The second option regarding renovation includes demolishing the 1918 portion of the building complex and renovating the rest of the buildings. The estimated cost of this option is $19.6 million.

Major buildings systems would also be upgraded in this option, as well as improvements made to traffic flow and parking.

The survey allows residents to express how much they would support a $19.6 to $23.7 million referendum to cover the cost of the renovation options. The tax increase per $100,000 of property value would not exceed $93 per year for the first five years, with declines after that.

The second option is to build a new school building on the existing Rexford-Longfellow site.

The new school building would be built next to the existing building complex. When completed, the existing building complex would be demolished. The estimated cost of his option is $24.9 million.

Residents are also asked how much they would be willing to support a $24.9 million referendum. The tax increase per $100,000 of property value would not exceed $98 per year for the first five years, with declines after that.

The survey does not list an option for leaving things as is.

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