Spring Hill school students will get a new high school after voters approved a $41.8 million bond package Saturday.
The bond package also will pay to remodel the middle and junior high schools into one building and make athletic improvements that will include artificial turf at the stadium.
Jacob Croft Botter/News-Journal Photo |
Billy Roy, left, and Dwain Gregory vote Saturday at the L.L. Williamson Auditorium on the Spring Hill campus.
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"We're very happy that the bond package passed," said Superintendent Wes Jones. "This shows the progressive thinking of the people who live in Spring Hill."
The bond proposal received 568 favorable votes, or 69 percent of the votes, with 256 votes, or 31 percent, against. The results are unofficial until canvassed Wednesday. The district has between 1,800 and 2,000 registered voters, Jones said.
Members of Parents for a Promising Future, a committee formed to support the bond proposal, campaigned for several months before the election. There was no organized opposition, said committee member Claudine Giffen.
"We're just ecstatic that it passed," Giffen said. "A lot of people worked very hard to make this happen, and it shows how much concern people here have for our children."
Construction of the first phase of the proposal will probably begin in early 2009, Jones said. It will take seven or eight months for the bonds to be sold, for architects to complete plans and for bids to be accepted for the projects. The bond will be paid out over a 30-year period.
Committee members held a victory party Saturday evening at Tele's restaurant.
"We really opened a window to the future with this election," said committee member Suzanne Smith. "We're very thankful to everybody who put so much time and effort into promoting the bond proposal."
The bond proposal will increase the total tax rate in the district to $1.54 per $100 of assessed value. The current tax rate is $1.185.
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TOTAL PACKAGE: $41.8 MILLION
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PHASE I HIGHLIGHTS
New high school: $29.4 million
Remodel middle and junior high schools into one school: $2.3 million
Primary school addition: $1 million
Phase I total: $32.8 million
PHASE II HIGHLIGHTS
Heating/AC replacement at middle, junior and high schools: $1.5 million
Roofing repairs at middle, junior and high schools: $2.25 million
Athletic improvements, including artificial turf at stadium: $2 million
Evaluation and possible demolition of intermediate school: $200,000
Estimated phase II total: $8.999 million
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Tax impact on Spring Hill taxpayers
A home with a taxable value of $100,000 after exemptions has a school tax bill of $1,185 at Spring Hill's current tax rate of $1.185 per $100 valuation. The tax rate is expected to increase to $1.54 per $100 valuation with the passage of the bond package, which would increase that home's school tax bill to $1,504.
Here's how the bond proposal will affect other homes' tax bills after exemptions:
Appraised value Taxable value* Annual increase
$100,000 $70,000 $248.52
$150,000 $112,500 $399.36
$200,000 $155,000 $550.20
$250,000 $197,500 $701.16
*The taxable value is the amount the homeowners actually pay taxes on, after Spring Hill's standard homestead exemptions of 15 percent plus $15,000.
The district has a tax freeze for residents 65 and older, meaning they won't experience any increase.
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Spring Hill ISD at a glance
Campus Grades served Constructed Enrollment Capacity
Primary Pre-K-second 2001 472 500
Intermediate Third-fourth 1932 296 300
Middle school Fifth-sixth 1973 281 300
Junior high Seventh-eighth 1962 268 300
High school Ninth-12th 1981 513 600
District student population: 1,830
