Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

District Has Many Projects Planned

More than a gymnasium is on the line should the Prescott School Board seek a millage increase this fall.

In a special meeting, Tuesday, June 1, the board discussed what the existing buildings need in the way of repair and how to get them done should a requested millage increase fail.

While much hoopla has been made about a new gym for the basketball teams, with the old one to be used as a physical education facility, the district's other plans for renovation are extensive.

Already, covered walkways have been erected at Prescott Middle School, and bids have been taken for a new roof at Prescott Elementary School.

However, these aren't the only plans the board has for the district's educational facilities. Should a 3.0 mill increase be passed, there is $727,000 in work to be done on other buildings.

This includes completely renovating the PMS gym, new heating and air conditioning systems for PMS and PES, lowering the ceilings and installing new lighting at PES, renovating the restrooms at PES and PMS and repairing the roofs at PMS and Prescott High School.

During the meeting, Superintendent Ron Wright said the district needs to set a direction and follow it as far as construction and renovations are concerned.

Should a millage pass, he said, getting these projects done will be easy.

But, board member Jim Franks suggested the district look at how this work could be accomplished should there be no additional monies coming in.

A contingency plan, he said, is needed in case something goes wrong.

Those items on the list, Franks said, are important, but the district doesn't need to try and do more than it can afford to.

The ballot issue, should the board seek a 3 mill increased and it fail, the district could see its millage rate fall back to the former amount of 17 mill as of 2001. This wouldn't generate enough money for the district to continue operating in its current fashion, and could result in the reduction of staff.

Should this happen, Wright said, the state would step in and begin pulling money from the district, making it hard to survive. "It would be catastrophic," he told the board. "We couldn't meet payroll for anyone."

At this time, Wright continued, the district has several positions open and needing to be filled. Additionally, the board recently adopted the state's new salary schedule.

This new schedule, Wright said, increases the salary budget by $200,000 annually. Without the new millage, the district will have problems filling vacancies and competing effectively.

In fact, he said, it would affect the district's ability to keep the current staff.

Franks said the proposed projects aren't extravagant and need to be done somehow. It is important, he continued, to get the information out to the voters who haven't made up their minds yet.

The district is still below the state average on millage by three mill.

Board President Rick McGough said the public needs to be told about these projects in a straightforward manner, and let the people know how important they are.

Franks pointed out the district can't apply for second lien bonds as this has been cut out by the state. If the district has to borrow money to complete these projects, he said, it will be from the state's revolving loan program, which will eventually eat into the reserve funds.

Wright said if a bond issue is passed, the first $1 million will be dedicated to getting these projects done.

The PMS gym, he said, is more than a physical education facility.

"This," he said of a bond issue, "is win-win for everyone involved. We need to inform people about the entire plan."

Should a bond issue be passed, he continued, it would generate enough money to do these projects and build a new gym without the district having to use other monies for them. The other funds, he added, can then be used toward upgrading education.

But, he said, if a bond issue fails, the district will likely have to keep doing patch jobs instead of properly repairing the problems.

In other business, the board examined bids for a new bus. Some five or six bids were submitted, with the panel choosing Amtram's bid.

This bid was for a 72-passenger school bus with a diesel engine at a price of $47,175.