Bond issue for St. Ignatius Schools allows for updates
Facility improvements and construction will be underway in the next year on the St. Ignatius Schools.
Voters passed a 20-year, K-12 bond in the midterm election on Nov. 6, with a 741-629 vote.
Ballots were canvassed by county officials Monday, Nov. 19.
The estimated impact of a home valued at $100,000 with a $1,350 taxable value is $190.48 annually, with a home valued at $200,000 with a taxable value at $2,700 could be impacted $380.96 a year.
St. Ignatius School District Superintendent Jason Sargent said that the bond, which will generate $5.6 million, will go toward the construction of a career technical center to include a metal shop, a wood shop, family consumer science area and auto area.
One of the bigger portions of the improvements will be to the high school gymnasium.
To the north end of the gym will be the technical center, while at the south will be a new, smaller gym complete with two new locker rooms and two Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant bathrooms.
The new gym, Sargent said, will allow for more opportunities where St. Ignatius students “won’t have to be up at 5 a.m.” or stay late for practice, making a “huge relief” for parents.
“We hope to break ground as soon as possible,” Sargent said Tuesday, Nov. 20 during a phone call.
He is hopeful that the projects will begin after the spring thaw in 2019, and a construction timeline is “being worked out” by officials.
Third time has proven to be a charm in terms of the district turning to voters for help.
In addition to the bond, an Inter-cap loan for $1.2 million will take care of maintenance around the schools, Sargent said.
Projects include fixing the St. Ignatius Elementary School roof, elementary fixtures, fixing the high school’s gym ceiling, as well as other improvements on a long list that the loan would help, Sargent said.
Going forward, community input will be taken by district officials, Sargent said.
The first student committee meeting will be held during school at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 28 and then the first community planning/input committee will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 29.
For updates on the construction and project timelines, visit web.stignatiusschools.org.
NO CHANGES or issues were reported as a result of county officials canvassing votes from the Nov. 6 midterm election.
On Monday, Nov. 19, County Commissioners Dave Stipe and Bill Barron and District Court Clerk Lyn Fricker certified the votes.
Usually, the county commissioners carry out the canvassing process, but Commissioner Chairman Gale Decker was on the ballot for reelection, so he was unable to be part of the canvassing, Stipe explained.
“(State officials) give us these abstracts, and it shows how many people voted in a precint,” Stipe said.
He explained by example that ballots that are reiewed by the three-person committee are the ones that were “thrown out” for various reasons, including absentee ballots that were turned into wrong districts or voters that filled in two options when only one was needed for a race.
About 72 percent of the county’s 19,286 registered voters cast their ballots during the election.
STIPE ALSO explained that write-ins are counted as a whole, but the results are not specifically tallied.
“Unless you’re filed as a write-in candidate, it wouldn’t matter if everyone in a precint voted for (that person,” a person cannot win an election.
For example, incumbent Lake County Sheriff Don Bell was reelected in May after being challenged by David Coffman.
Although Bell was reelected, voters still submitted write-in candidates, with just more than 500 names being counted.
Practice use to be that every write-in, regardless if they were filed or not, was tallied, but Stipe said that mandates have changed.