! BAC statement on Issue 4
The Cleveland public school construction program, with 37 new or rebuilt schools to its credit and three new high schools well under way, has nearly exhausted the $335 million approved by voters in 2001. More work remains to be done, so the School District has asked voters this November to approve $200 million more in construction and repair money, with an additional half-mill continuing levy for maintenance and repairs. With the state matching most construction spending at $2 for each local dollar spent, the program is a monumentally good deal for Cleveland. Anyone who has visited the new schools has seen that they offer well-equipped classrooms with modern heating, air-conditioning and lighting as well as access to educational technology -- a stark contrast to the schools that they replace. The increased energy efficiency of these schools will save taxpayers money for decades to come. To its credit, the Board of Education back in 2001 took an unusual step for a public construction project: The Board promised that an independent Bond Accountability Commission would be established to monitor the construction program and the spending of the tax-supported construction bond money. The all-volunteer BAC and its staff have worked hard to fulfill their responsibility, focusing on cost control, execution of bond sales, construction planning, and community participation in workforce and contracting opportunities. The bonds approved in 2001 were never intended to be enough to fund the complete construction program. The District CEO at the time characterized the amount as enough for “a good start.” The additional $200 million requested by the District falls within the range of $167 million to $222 million independently calculated last year by the BAC as the amount needed to complete the Master Plan at the time (now due to be reduced) and to continue repairing other schools not included in the Plan. The requested additional halfmill continuing levy begins to address a BAC concern that the District lacks sufficient funding to maintain its new schools. Sometimes we hear the question: “Since the District is losing enrollment, why do we need more schools?” The answer is that the District is not adding schools, it is replacing schools that are in such bad shape that complete repairs are not practical. All areas of Cleveland will not have the advantages of the new schools unless the program can be completed. The state’s rules ensure that the co-funded construction program will provide only the new or like-new school space that the District’s enrollment requires at the end of the program. The state-funded program has been a good investment for Cleveland. The BAC will continue trying to make it so in the future.