Voters in Kaneland School District 302 will decide this fall whether to pass a $75 million building bond propsoal, 1 1/2 years after giving the cash-strapped district a one-year $3 million education fund tax hike.
The Board of Education on Monday unanimously approved preparing the referendum request, with final approval set for August.
If passed in November, the building bond proposal would add 35 cents per $100 equalized assessed valuation to each homeowner’s property tax bill until some bonds are paid back in 2014. After that, it would gradually drop to 24 cents per $100 equalized assessed valuation by 2027, at which point all bonds would have been repaid, said Supt. Charles McCormick.
The owner of a $300,000 house would pay about $350 extra per year for seven years, then pay smaller increases each year until paying $240 extra in 2027, according to projections.
The district would use the money to build a middle school in Sugar Grove; two elementary schools at locations to be determined; an addition to Blackberry Creek Elementary School in Elburn; and for life safety work at several facilities, McCormick said.
“In light of the recent issuance of tax bills and the magnitude of assessment increases in some townships on top of the district’s increase in taxes from the education fund referendum, I know this is not a good time to be talking about another tax increase.
However, the overcrowding of schools and the timing of when new schools can be built after a referendum require that we do so,” he added.
The board will hold a meeting to form a referendum support group at 7 p.m. May 23, in the district office, 47W326 Keslinger Rd. in Maple Park.