Long Range Planning - October 24, 2005 Minutes

Long Range Plan Review Committee
Minutes - October 24, 2005

Members in Attendance:
Harry Amend* Calvin DeHaas Bryan Martin* Vern Newby* Lynn Vershum
Hazel Bauman* Jim Ferguson John McLeod Dave Patzer Dianna Walde
Jeff Bengtson Scott Fischer* Leslie Miller Joel Palmer Dave Yadon
Steve Briggs* Doug Jaworski Jane Morgan Ann Siebert John Young
Susan Clayton Erin Lenz Jill Neal John Swallow

*Ex-officio members

Welcome:
Jill Neal called the meeting to order at 4:20 p.m. The meeting was held at the Midtown Center meeting room.

Approval of September Minutes:
Motion by Lynn Vershum, second by Calvin DeHaas to approve the September 26, 2005 minutes, approved unanimously.

Tonight’s Agenda:
Harry Amend explained that the purpose of tonight’s extended meeting is to form an S.P.F.L. recommendation to the Board. The goal is have this recommendation presented to the Board at their November 7th meeting (committee attendance encouraged) and receive final approval at their November 21st meeting. The committee would begin planning the levy campaign at their next meeting scheduled for November 28th.
He reported that the committee sponsored by the Chamber regarding the taxpayer appetite met last week. They would support an S.P.F.L. that is under $2.00 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value.

Seattle-Northwest Securities Handout:
Harry pointed out that Seattle-Northwest provided information on combined tax rates of $1.25, $1.50, $1.75 and $2.00 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value. As part of their analysis, Seattle-Northwest used a 7.50% annual growth rate (projected). The current combined tax rate is $1.29, $1.04 for the S.P.F.L. and .25 for the Lake City High School bond. This rate decreased from $2.00 due to the 34.87% growth rate. The committee proceeded to go over all four combined tax rate tables.

March 15, 2005 Needs Assessment Subcommittee Recommendation (handout):
The estimated project costs for Sorensen, Winton, Borah, Bryan and Canfield were listed on the back of this handout. Approximately $750,000 comes out of each of the 4 years of the S.P.F.L. for technology.

Projected S.P.F.L. Fund Generated FY 2007-10 (handout):
On this handout the tax rate used is $1.925 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value. The total amount available for projects, including $3,000,000 for technology, using this rate would be $48,134,834. All of the estimated projected costs were listed for Lakes (firm cost), Winton, Borah, the new elementary and Canfield. It also showed what the projected collections would be beginning in Jan. 2007 through July 2010 (two payments per year). The committee will discuss ballot language at the next meeting (need to be flexible). The committee was concerned about a shortage of funds at the end of the S.P.F.L. similar to what happened with Lakes.
On the back of this handout is a draft example of S.P.F.L. financing through the Winton construction with a projected completion of August 2008. The first item that Harry pointed out was the $2,500,000 carry forward from the 2002 S.P.F.L. for the Lakes project. This number is lower than what was talked about in the spring due to the estimated purchase price on 70 acres of property that the Board is seeking to purchase for a future high school site (40 acres), future middle school site (20 acres) and future elementary site (10 acres). The District is in the process of working on that agreement.

Tax Anticipation Note:
This levy would not generate any funds until January 2007. The District would either have to wait until January 2007 in order to start receiving funds or get a tax anticipation note (TAN). Steve Briggs stated that the District could take the $2,500,000 carry forward and ride on that money until August 1, 2006 which would move us beyond the July timeline and would allow for a TAN for two payments. This would allow the Lakes project to be completed on a timely basis. The District would be unable to complete another project at the same time as Lakes.
Harry asked if the committee is recommending that the Board implement a TAN to acquire the funding necessary to do the Lakes Middle School project (thumbs up or down). All thumbs were up.

District Enrollment:
Harry reported that last spring the District projected a 4% increase in elementary enrollment which is why a new elementary school was discussed being built at the same time as the Lakes project. Current enrollment shows an increase of approximately 1.7% at the elementary level (less than half). He suggested that the committee discuss moving the Winton project to directly behind Lakes instead of a new elementary school.

Amount of the S.P.F.L.:
Vern Newby stated that he would like to see the committee get as close to $2.00 per $1,000 as possible so property acquisition could be included. It was pointed out that the District’s hands are tied as far as impact fees go until a change is made by the Legislature, we are limited to levies. Putting S.P.F.L. information out in laymen’s terms for the voters was discussed (complicated issue). Voters will also want to know why the District is asking for more money. Vern suggested that a new member orientation is needed that would include tours of the schools. It was also suggested to have open houses at the schools for concerned voters so they could see what is needed and why.
Motion by John Young, second by Jeff Bengtson to set the levy amount at $2.00 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value, passed 14-3.

Order of Projects:
Lakes will be the first project completed since it was approved for the last S.P.F.L. It will have a capacity of approximately 750. The order of the remaining projects was discussed (Winton, Borah, new elementary and Canfield). The committee needed to determine if all these projects should remain on the levy with the possibility of running short on the last project or have fewer projects with fewer dollars. Harry asked the committee their thoughts on which project should be first, Winton or the new elementary. There was dialogue regarding Winton and the new elementary being one and the same (capacity of 500 which in effect would add a total of 200 capacity). Some felt that due to the lower growth the District is experiencing this year in the elementary schools, that both schools would not be needed in that same general area. Others argued about the benefits of a small school and that they did not want both Winton and Sorensen moved off their current sites. It was also felt that the extra 200 capacity plus a new elementary is needed for future growth. The Winton playground, baseball field and gazebo are part of the Land, Water and Conservation Fund (approximately 2.5 acres). The District is unable to build in those areas unless they buy land back or swap some property.
There were also discussions regarding relieving the overcrowding in the northern schools. The District is currently shuttle busing 200 students that are unable to attend their in-zone school due to lack of space. Committee discussion followed.
Motion by John Young, second by Jill Neal that Lakes Middle School will be first project included in the next S.P.F.L. followed by the new elementary school, Winton, Borah and Canfield, sequence and site to be determined by the Long Range Planning Committee, approved unanimously.

Other S.P.F.L. Topics:
The $2.00 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value recommendation will include the flexibility to purchase property, if needed.

Timeline on Possible Uses of the old Lakes Building:
The committee agreed that this item will be discussed after the levy.

New Lakes Plans:
Harry showed the committee overheads of the new Lakes Middle School (3-story, brick building) located on Person’s Field. Bryan Martin stated that this will be the first building in the State of Idaho that will be certified as a high performance building (heating and air conditioning).

Next Meeting:
The next Long Range Planning meeting will be held on Monday, November 28th at 4:30 p.m. at the Midtown Center meeting room.

Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Cheri Beard
Administrative Secretary

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