Saginaw city school leaders will not allow COVID-19 to stop them from pursuing a buildings upgrade overall plan, including a new unified high school.
A 7-mill, 30-year construction bond issue still will go on the Nov. 4 ballot. It’s priced at a cumulative $99.95 million, and property owners would pay about $3.50 a year for each $1,000 of their home’s sales value.
Superintendent Ramont Roberts says supporters perceive the best time to campaign for the request is during a presidential election that draws maximum voter turnout. He adds that in other communities, similar school building proposals won approval last spring, even after the coronavirus outbreak had been unleashed.
“We’re moving forward with it,” he says, pointing to a long-range planning process that took place through the entire covid-free 2019 calendar year, featuring a series of community hearings and workshops.
Under 1990s “Proposal A” changes in state law, local districts are not allowed to seek millages for curricula, or for more teachers or textbooks. They only are permitted to pursue building improvements.
The most talked-about change would combine Saginaw High and Arthur Hill at the west riverbank site of the Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy, on North Niagara Street near the Genesee Bridge. The newer SASA gym and auditorium would be preserved within the surrounding new construction.
SASA would relocate to a new structure at the Arthur Hill site.
There are a few cost-saving changes to the original plan. A main change is that Central Middle would not be renovated. Instead, a portion of Saginaw High would be converted into a middle school for an East Side partner with Thompson Middle.
Also, there would be a delay in paying for demolition of eight vacant former elementaries. They are Edith Baillie, Nelle Haley, John Moore, Emerson, Jones, Longfellow, Coulter and Houghton. The former Ricker Middle also would face delays to the wrecking ball. However, Buena Vista Township is taking ownership of the former Buena Vista High.
Saginaw’s most recent buildings levy, mostly for a new Thompson Middle and Loomis Elementary, still is on the books at 9.42 mills. It passed narrowly in 2004 on a second attempt, after a widespread defeat in 2003. However, demographic changes in the city since then have led to a reduced count of older homeowners who have been past opponents, which could make a general election victory more possible.
Under the revise current plan, the owner of a home with $30,000 sales value (double the tax-statement assessment) would pay about $100 added per year in property tax. For an $80,000 sales value, the cost would be about $240 per annum.
With approval, a two-year construction plan could begin early in 2021.
