Darrell Dirckx, head custodian at Lakeview Public Schools, explained some of the facilities needs that are included in a proposed bond referendum being considered by the district. A total of 35 rooftop HVAC units, like the one visible behind Dirckx, are original to the 2002 Lakeview school building, and need to be replaced.
COTTONWOOD — It’s getting close to 20 years since the oldest part of Lakeview School was built, and there’s parts of the building that need to be replaced due to age and wear.
The school district will be voting on a two-part, total $10.8 million facilities bond referendum that would fund the projects — but the process of getting the word out to the voters will be a little different, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We wanted to be as transparent as we could,” said Lakeview Superintendent Chris Fenske. But because it’s not possible to hold large meetings in person, the school district has made a lot of information available online, he said.
Lakeview will be holding a series of virtual information meetings the public can join via Zoom, Fenske said. The first meeting will be held tonight at 7 p.m.
“We’re going to run our livestream, Facebook Live and Zoom simultaneously,” Fenske said. “Hopefully people are willing to participate in the live session.”
Other virtual public meetings will be held on Sunday, and on Feb. 3. The referendum vote will take place on Feb. 9, at the Cottonwood Community Center and the Wood Lake Community Center.
The referendum will have two questions. If both pass, the total facilities bonds would come to $10.8 million. The first question in the referendum would cover a variety of facilities updates to the 2002 portion of the Lakeview school building. The referendum includes replacing the roof and HVAC units, resurfacing the parking lot, replacing the kitchen freezer and cooler, and other building updates, for $7.865 million.
A lot of the items included in the first question of the referendum are problems caused by normal wear and tear on the building over 20 years, said Lakeview head custodian Darrell Dirckx. For example, there are cracks in hallway floor tiles and wear on doors in the school. However, some of the bigger items covered in the referendum include replacing the roof and HVAC units of the 2002 portion of the school.
“We’ve been keeping an eye on our roof for some time now,” Fenske said. “We’re trying to limit the water infiltration.”
There are areas of the roof that leak, and the water has caused damage to ceiling tiles, and even to a piano in the school, Dirckx said. There are a total of 35 rooftop HVAC units that are also aging, he said.
The second question would resurface the Lakeview track, install artificial turf on the football field and convert one softball field to a youth baseball field, for $2.95 million.
The building referendum is split into two questions as a result of public feedback, Fenske said. In a survey conducted by the school district earlier this fall, Lakeview community members were less certain whether they’d support the proposed athletic field updates. Many said they wanted to learn more first, Fenske said.
If either of the referendum questions passes, construction would take place during the summers of 2021 and 2022.
If only Question 1 of the referendum passes, a residential property valued at $100,000 would see its taxes go up $22 a year. If only Question 2 passes, the property would see a tax increase of $8 a year. If both questions pass, the tax increase would be $30. The increase is anticipated to be limited to four years.
More information on the referendum, including log-in information for tonight’s Zoom meeting, is available on the Lakeview school district’s website, lakeview2167.com.
