Bond Committee Urges New Schools, Repairs

Mill Levy Package Would Boost Arts, Music, Class Size, Textbooks And More

After five months of study, the Citizens Committee on Facility Needs (CCFN) recommended that the Denver Board of Education ask voters to approve a $470 million bond and a $20 million mill levy increase as part of the November general election.

“We strongly urge you to put the bond and mill levy package on the November ballot,” said CCFN chairman Steve Kaplan. “We believe that if you provide the vision, if you provide the standard of excellence, this community will respond.”
The $470 million bond total would build new schools in northeast Denver, improve technology, meet code requirements, make repairs, and refinance some existing debt. “Every school gets something,” said Kaplan.

Under the $20 million mill levy proposal, the largest component is $7 million to place a full-time art or music teacher in each elementary school. (Please see related mill levy proposal list.)

The 40-member CCFN actually recommended two bond packages. One would raise $310 million and not require an increase in property taxes (for the owner of a house valued at $237,000). The second bond package would raise $470 million and cost the owner of the same $237,000 house $18 additional in taxes per year.

CCFN chairman Steve Kaplan said the committee strongly favors the larger amount. “The needs of the district are greater” than what the $310 million package would yield, he said.

For starters, said Stephanie O’Malley, chairwoman of the New Schools Committee, capacity issues in far northeast neighborhoods are “very glaring and quite apparent.”

The $470 million bond package would provide $104 million in new schools and other improvements – $69.6 million for new schools, $10 million for classroom additions, $13.9 million for a new bus terminal in northeast Denver, $2.9 million for Food Service, and $7 million for safety and security.

The new schools would be a K-8 school in Green Valley Ranch, a K-8 school in Montbello, a high school at Stapleton, and support for building the Denver School of Science and Technology, a charter school. Classroom additions would be slated for Johnson, Schenck, Schmitt and Gust elementary schools.

The food service improvements would bring remodeled kitchens to West, Lincoln, North and Montbello high schools and to Skinner Middle School.

The security proposal includes an expansion of closed circuit cameras for all schools, improved radio systems for security staff, and new intrusion alarms.

Within the $470 million package, $49.1 million would support technology improvements – $33.2 million for network improvements to schools, and $4.1 million to build a data warehouse, among other items.

Repair items would require $173.5 million. Brian Wert, chairman of the Required Repairs Committee, said the $470 million package is needed. “Our committee is very concerned that (the smaller bond package) would leave many assets prone to failure,” he said.

Boilers, chillers, roofs, windows , hot water heaters, flooring, masonry restoration, painting, and athletic fields are among the required repair recommendations. Additionally, a $10 million restoration of North High School is proposed.

Under Educational Programs, $8 million would overhaul the soon-to-be-vacated Byers school; $4.9 million would improve the Career Education Center; $8 million would be available for program enhancements; $24 million for Learning Landscapes; $2 million for KIPP Charter School; and $16 million for air-conditioning at six schools.

The educational program enhancements, said Kaplan, are geared to help boost “underutilized” schools and improve neighborhood schools. The goal, he said, is to improve school choices and ensure that parents and students opt for schools out of their neighborhood because they’re drawn to something exciting, not because the nearby school is deficient.

 

 

 

Six Mill Levy Ideas Forwarded

The $20 million mill levy proposal forwarded by the Citizens Committee on Facility Needs includes six elements:

School Revitalization, $2.5 million – Establish new choice programs at existing schools and begin revitalization of low-performing schools.
Art/Music, $7 million – Provide an average of one new non-convertible teacher at each elementary school.
Early Childhood Education, $2.1 million – Provide at least one early education class at each district school.
Textbooks, $3.5 million – Provide funds to purchase additional textbooks.
Secondary School Teachers, $3.1 million – Restore middle and high school teacher staffing ratios to their 2002-2003 levels.
All-Day Kindergarten, $2 million – Establish at least one all-day kindergarten class for students from each school with 50 percent or higher free/reduced-price lunch eligibility.

What’s A Bond? What’s A Mill Levy?

If the Board agrees, voters in November would be asked to consider separate bond and mill levy proposals.

By state law, the resulting bond and mill levy revenues are used for different purposes.

A bond election provides dollars for long-term capital improvements to renovate, remodel or add to existing schools and/or to build new schools.

A mill levy override provides General Fund dollars to help with day-to-day operating expenses to run school programs.

The last time that Denver Public Schools asked the voters for such support was in 1998. That year, voters approved a $305 million bond package that resulted in the construction of 10 new schools and numerous classroom addition and maintenance projects. Voters also approved a $17 million mill levy override that provided a host of new educational programs including reading assistance, library materials and textbooks, and technology support, among other items.

 

How the two bond proposals compare by major expense category:
	$470.6 Million Bond	$310.5 Million Bond
New Schools	$104.0 million	$78.2 million
Technology	$ 49.1 million	$37.1 million
Codes	$ 54.8 million	$44.5 million
Repairs	$173.7 million	$99.6 million
Educational Programs	$ 62.9 million	$24.9 million
COP’s (debt refinance)	$ 26.0 million	$26.0 million

• Recognized the appointments of principals Charles Babb, Philips Elementary; Janet Belt, Steele Elementary; Kathy Callum, East High School; Barbara Cooper, Hallett Elementary; Catherine Gonzales, Greenwood Elementary; Anita Myers, Force Elementary; Gail Paige-Archambeau, Centennial Elementary; Jai Palmer, Whittier Elementary; Joyce Simmons, Amesse Elementary; and Peter Sherman, Park Hill Elementary.
• Approved the architect selection for the four-classroom addition project at Centennial Elementary.
• Approved the final report for the Stapleton II K-8 Project.
• Approved a lease purchase agreement for the construction of a K-8 school in the Green Valley area to open August 2004 and to acquire parcels of land for future school sites in the Montbello area.
• Appointed a custodian bank for the purposed of administering the district’s Bond Redemption Fund.
• Accepted the arbitrator’s decision in a DCTA grievance of an administrative transfer in which the arbitrator ruled in favor of the district.
• Approved the application of a CDE Expelled and At-Risk Students Services Grant, a continuation of an application for Cole, Kepner, Smiley and Bruce Randolph middle schools with a focus on suspension and substance abuse prevention.