The levy was set and bid documents approved during a special meeting Tuesday night of the Trenton R-9 Board of Education.
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The levy was set and bid documents approved during a special meeting Tuesday night of the Trenton R-9 Board of Education.
The levy for the 1999-2000 school year was set at $3.74 on the $100 assessed valuation, which includes an operating levy of $2.78 and a debt service of 96 cents. The $2.78 operating levy is three cents higher than a year ago and is based on state calculations that include a 69-cent Proposition C tax rollback. Superintendent Dr. Dan Lowry said that districts which increase their voluntary rollback from the previous year lose their calculated levies, which is used to figure the state’s minimum guarantee formula. If the board had agreed to rollback more than the 69 cents calculated by the state, Dr. Lowry said the district would have lost several thousand dollars in state aid.
The 96-cent debt service is three cents less than what had been projected when voters approved bonds earlier this year for the middle school/Rissler construction projects. Dr. Lowry noted that he has visited with the district’s bonding agent, Dick Bartow of George K. Baum, and he feels the board can still be prudent in setting the debt service at 96 cents for the current school year.
Dr. Lowry said that the levy will generate approximately $1,275,035 in local tax revenue for the coming year, based on a 91 percent collection rate.
Approval was also given to bid documents for the middle school/Rissler project, with some minor changes being made and alternative bids on some work being determined. One of the major alternate bids determined at the meeting involved installation of energy-efficient windows at the Rissler School and installation of three-ton heating and cooling units. There will also be an alternate bid sought on the roof at the new middle school.
Frangkiser & Hutchens is expected to complete construction documents by Sept. 10, with a pre-bid meeting of contractors to be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 28 in the high school library. Bids will be advertised locally and architect Michael Kounts said he will also be soliciting names of contractors whom his firm will contact about bidding on the project.
Bids will be received on Oct. 6 and will be opened at a public meeting at 5:30 p.m. that evening in the high school library. The board will approve bids at its Oct. 12 meeting, with a pre-construction meeting tentatively scheduled with the successful contractors on Oct. 28. Construction can then begin after that date.
In other business, the board reviewed enrollment figures for the school year and were told that enrollment included 20 Hispanic students. Dr. Lowry said he and Director of Special Services Louise Reasoner were looking at programs to be implemented to meet the needs of those students, adding that there were grant monies available for those services.
Following an executive session, the board voted to hire Skeet Flowers of Trenton as a custodian at the Rissler School.
All votes were 6-0, with Mike George absent.
The next regular meeting of the board will be at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 15. This is one day later than normal due to the regional MSBA meeting on Sept. 14.