SouthTown Star – August 4, 2010
BY MICHELLE MULLINS, Correspondent
The Lockport Township High School District 205 board has agreed to move forward with the legal requirements for partnering with Homer Glen to build a new high school, but the board has not committed to that plan.
The school board on Tuesday voted to have its attorneys work with attorneys for the village of Homer Glen to draft an intergovernmental agreement to build a new high school while also retaining the right to seek about $35 million in state school construction grants.
To receive grant money under state regulations, a school must own the building and voters must approve the construction through a referendum proposal, school officials said. However, under the plan put forth by Homer Glen, the village would finance construction of a high school on Cedar Road using its home rule powers and federal Build America Bonds, and the district would lease the school with the opportunity to buy it at a later date.
District 205 Supt. Garry Raymond said the high school is moving up on the state’s list of school construction projects and he would hate to lose a grant worth about a third of construction costs. He also said he’s been told a state grant can be applied even if the district leased the school from Homer Glen. The district, however, would have to get voters to approve the plan in a referendum proposal in November.
The school board must act by its Aug. 16 board meeting to put a question on November’s ballot.
The school board has two other options as it seeks to alleviate overcrowding:
• Build a $5.4 million addition to the East campus building, which would add 12 classrooms for about 325 students. Construction likely would be completed by the fall or winter of 2012.
• Ask voters for a sixth time to fund construction of a new high school for about 1,900 students. Board president Ron Svara said a referendum proposal for that option could be voted on in November 2012. Under that plan, construction of the new school would be completed by fall 2017.
Five referendum proposals have been defeated in recent years.
A new school would cost about $90 million to build. Another $10 million would be used to renovate the East campus, including building new gyms, expanding the auto shop, adding room for an orchestra and a theater-in-the-round, replacing the football field turf with synthetic turf and creating tutoring centers and a writing lab.
If the referendum option is chosen, the tax rate likely would stay the same since current bonds would retire by then, officials said.
“I’m in support of a new school, period,” Svara said. “In the Homer Glen proposal, we will get it. In the referendum proposal, we may or may not get it.”
Board member Cindy Polke said an addition to East is “a Band-Aid, not a solution.” She said working with Homer Glen, using the Build America Bonds and taking advantage of competitive bidding in a weak economy is very attractive to the district.
The district needs two four-year schools to help students feel connected to their school and give them better opportunities to join clubs and sports, Polke said. A new school also would alleviate the overcrowding and eliminate staggered class schedules, she said.
“We all know good schools drive good communities, and there’s an arrow going through my heart because of what people are saying about our community,” Polke said.
Board member John Lukasik said he believes the district needs a new school but thinks an addition to the East campus would satisfy the communities’ wishes. He said he believes the board would be cheating voters if it opted for the Homer Glen proposal but he would support a proposal that lets the voters choose.
http://www.southtownstar.com/neighborhoodstar/orlandpark/2566560,080510lockport205.article
