The project would replace seven aging school buildings that now house those grades with four new ones.
A 4.66-mill bond issue for 37 years is being sought for new construction of schools.
The board is seeking an accompanying tax proposal of 2.3 mills for 29 years to cover the required 0.5 mill maintenance requirement of the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, for projects along with infrastructure updates at Troy High School. Among the projects would be updating HVAC, adding air conditioning and making electrical and other needed improvements. That building was constructed in 1959 with an addition/renovations in 2006.
The two requests appear on the ballot as one combined issue.
The property tax cost to a taxpayer with a home value of $100,000 would be $244 a year combined, according to the Miami County Auditor’s Office.
The total cost of projects is estimated to be $154 million, said Jeff Price, district treasurer. The district was notified this spring that it was eligible this year for $45.6 million in state program funding for a project. Funding had been anticipated possibly in 2024.
A district building steering committee formed earlier this year to help review options stepped up its work to help prepare for a project proposal yet this year. The proposal is for the preschool-to-fourth-grade buildings to be located at the Cookson elementary and Hook elementary school sites, along with a site at Ohio 718 and McKaig Avenue. The location of the building for grades five and six is property the district owns off Swailes Road.
The project funding as proposed includes money for the abatement of buildings being replaced and return of those sites to green space.
Ben Poeppelman, levy committee co-chair, said the group working to pass the funding is a “community led” initiative.
“Our kids deserve better, our teaching staff deserves better, Troy deserves better. We need to do better. We need to trust the facts,” he said.
The new schools are needed, he said, pointing out that the average age of a Troy elementary school is 81 years, compared to a national average of 42 years.
The plan proposed is similar to one put before voters three years ago, which failed, with some changes made in response to community feedback, Poeppelman said.
“Without a doubt I think this is Troy’s best chance of passing a levy so far,” he said.
This is the third time in the past decade that the school district has tried a bond issue to do a shared-cost project with the state to build new schools.
More information from the levy committee is available at CitizensforTroyCitySchools.com and a Facebook page with the same name.
A separate Facebook page, “Save Troy’s Schools, Vote Against Bond Levy” argues that with inflation already straining residents’ finances, the cost of the tax and the 29-37 year length are too much. They further advocate adding onto or renovating the existing schools.
Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com
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