Referendum will come down to a February 10 vote
By Tony E. Windsor Soon voters will turn out to the polls and decide about a $174 million capital project to essentially build a new Laurel School District. Plans call for building two new complexes, one housing as many as 1,200 elementary students and another serving as home to 1,400 middle and high school youth. According to Laurel School District Superintendent John McCoy, in October the school district received "Certificates of Need," from the Delaware Department of Education (DOE). The DOE performed an evaluation and determined that Laurel is in need of all new school facilities. McCoy said the Delaware Department of Education in conjunction with Studio JAED, a Delaware architectural firm that assists in planning and design for government, industrial, commercial and educational facilities, evaluated the district's school buildings. They determined it to be more cost effective to build new facilities than attempt to renovate the existing schools. Studio JAED has performed similar evaluations for other Delaware school districts including Seaford, Indian River, Lake Forest, Delmar, Appoquinimink and Delaware State University. According to data provided through the evaluation, renovations at Paul Dunbar Elementary school would cost 92 percent more than new construction. Renovations at North Laurel Elementary School would cost 67 percent more than new construction and renovations at the middle and high school would cost as much as 59 percent more than constructing new buildings. The state has said that renovation of these buildings is not an option from its perspective. McCoy said a key problem being realized by the district is the inability for the current school facilities to handle the use of new technology. He said that there are times when teachers use special SMART Boards and computers and fuses will blow out shutting power off entire wings of a school building. He said the state plans to allow students in the near future to take standardized testing online and in its current status, the district schools would be unable to handle that type of power load. "You can imagine how troublesome it would be to have students taking online testing only to lose power halfway through," he said. McCoy also said technology is a vital part of the school, especially in the area of a new state initiative known as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education, which requires "effective, efficient and sufficient technologies." He said that students in Delmar, Indian River, and Cape Henlopen have already been enhanced to effectively access technology as part of the "21st century Schools" initiative. Capital project plan The proposed capital project calls for replacing the existing Laurel High School and Middle School with a new complex slated to be built on the grounds of the current high school facility. The district plans to build the two schools in one complex to help save money by allowing the schools to share such amenities as a kitchen, mechanic's room and an 800-seat auditorium. Both schools will be able to house as many as 869 more students than are currently being served in the middle and high schools. McCoy said the 800-seat auditorium will be beneficial to not only the schools, but the general public as well. He said the auditorium can be utilized for special community events and will feature raised flooring to allow for enhanced viewing opportunities from all seat locations. If approved, the elementary school complex would be constructed on the current site of the Laurel football field, which would be demolished. Like the concept for the high school and middle school complex, McCoy said by enabling the two elementary schools to share one complex, it will save money and allow funds to be allocated to student needs. In addition to new school buildings, as part of the proposed project, the district will also build a new athletic stadium and track. The stadium will be built on grounds behind the current high school, near the Laurel Post Office. McCoy said the current stadium does not meet Americans with Disability Act accessibility requirements and is non-compliant with insurance regulations. Open seat stadiums are no longer allowed for high school sporting events. In addition, a new high school track will be built as part of the project. The current track presents safety issues, according to McCoy. He said there are issues with small stones working their way up to the surface of the track on a continuous basis. The cost of the district project is about $137 million. McCoy said the state has committed to fund the lion's share of the costs, which amounts to about $101.4 million or 74 percent of the project costs. Those funds will come from the sale of government bonds. The balance of the project costs, about $35.6 million is being asked to come from the school district's residents. This request is the basis for the upcoming referendum. McCoy said the tax increase necessary to fund the new school construction will not occur at once. He said the increase will be phased in over a six-year period, then decrease for the remaining life of the bonds (through 2034). As an example, a home with an assessed value of $7,100 and a market value of $100,000 would pay an average tax over the 25-year life of the bonds of $119.11 per year, with the highest tax of $197.42 occurring in the sixth year. Most, not all, support plan While promotion supporting the referendum has been widespread and very visible throughout the community,
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there are those who feel this is too much for taxpayers to take on during such an economically challenging time. One of those is Laurel businessman Ed Carmine. Carmine owns Mid-Shore Boat Sales and SMW Sales, LLC, a farm equipment and irrigation business on Trussum Pond Road in Laurel. Carmine said his major concern is what he terms a "disproportionate" tax burden. He said those people who are business owners or large land owners, such as farmers, will pay the lion's share of the district's portion of the building project and far higher taxes than the average home owner. "I realize anyone speaking out against the school referendum is automatically labeled 'against kids and education,' " he said. "That is very unfair. I have four nieces and a nephew and I love kids. But, what I see proposed here in Laurel is fundamentally unfair. If the state or county could develop a fairer system for repayment of the loan, such as having it spread out in a more equitable manner among all tax payers, like the capitation tax, I may feel differently. But, to expect me as a business owner to bear such a high tax burden, above and beyond what many other property owners will have to pay, is not the most equitable way to do this." There is no Plan B Laurel Superintendent McCoy cautions that should this referendum not pass, the state will not provide renovation money for Laurel schools. He said the Delaware Department of Education awarded the "Certificates of Necessity" to the Laurel School District on October 29, 2009. These certificates will expire as of October 31, 2010 if the referendum does not pass. He said the funds allocated for the Laurel School District will then be awarded to other school districts in Delaware and fund new construction in districts "all around Laurel" and Laurel will move down the list for major capital improvement projects. "I have stated before that there is no 'plan B' should this referendum not pass," McCoy said. "We are simply putting all our efforts into helping to educate the public about the needs of our children here in the Laurel School District in an effort to get a good turnout and a support for the February referendum," he said. Carmine said he is also concerned with the "all or nothing at all" approach by the district and state in promoting the referendum. "The all or nothing at all approach being used to promote this referendum does not sit well with me," Carmine said. "I am not sure if this is the state telling us it is all or nothing, or the district trying to scare us into a 'yes' vote. If the state is leaving us with this ultimatum, I find it unfair for state officials to hold our own tax dollars over our heads threatening to give it to another school district if we don't pass this referendum." Not all of the district's buildings are being slated for demolition as part of the proposed construction project. The project will leave the historic center piece of the Laurel Middle School, dated 1924, as an active part of school operations. McCoy said the school has been planned as home to the Laurel School District Central Administrative Offices. Currently, the district administration operates in a building located at the south end of the town along Central Avenue, near the Laurel High School. McCoy said he has also considered cost-saving plans for the current central administration offices. He said currently the Laurel School District sends students who are in need of specialized learning through alternative school settings to either the Western Sussex Academy, which is housed in a building next to the tennis courts adjacent to the middle school, or SCOPE in Bridgeville. SCOPE (Sussex County Opportunities Program in Education); McCoy said this involves a lengthy bus ride for the Laurel students in the morning and afternoon. He said this also provides that Laurel pays tuition for each of the students to the Woodbridge School District. "I would like to see us keep our children here in Laurel," he said. "I have the idea that we could use the first floor of the current administration building for the Western Sussex Academy and the upstairs floor to house our own SCOPE program. This would save the district money and make it much more convenient and comfortable for our students." McCoy said that it is unclear what will happen to the Paul Dunbar and North Laurel school buildings should the construction take place. He said it is hoped that due to the historic significance of the Paul Dunbar school building, it will be allocated for public use by a non-profit organization. He said it may be necessary to tear down the North Laurel school building and utilize the site for future elementary school expansion. He said another consideration is to use the property housing the North Laurel school as a means to possibly trade with owners of property on the east side of US 13 for the construction of a school to meet the town's future expansion in that direction. Referendum schedule The Laurel School District referendum voting will take place in the Laurel High School Library, Wednesday, Feb. 10, from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. Those allowed to vote in the referendum must be a Laurel resident, 18 years or older, and a United States citizen. Proof of age and residency will be required. Prospective voters need not be registered to vote in a general election. Absentee ballots are also available from the Department of Elections by calling 856-5367.
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