The Platte County School District’s voters gave resounding approval to the district’s no-tax-increase bond proposal, while at the same time trouncing the proposed attachment to the Metropolitan Community College District.
Voters approved the $73 million bond issuance for capitol improvements with 2,206 votes cast in favor. Negative votes cast were 1,350. The bond issue needed a super majority of more than 57 percent to pass. It earned 62 percent.
More than 70 percent of Platte County R-3 voters said no to attachment to the community college district. In the Smithville School District, voters denied attachment with nearly 90 percent voting no.
Projects promised in the R-3 bond issuance are:
New Middle School — Located in the southern attendance area near Highway 152 and Platte Purchase on 80 acres of donated land, the proposed new middle school will have capacity for 500-600 students and the potential for future expansion on the site.
First Phase of Platte County High School Rebuild — In support of PCHS’s master plan, the first phase of this rebuild includes 26 classrooms and learning labs; a new main gymnasium complex, cafeteria commons; a new baseball field; and improved parking and traffic patterns.
Improvements to Barry School and Pathfinder Elementary — With the new middle school serving the southern attendance area, Barry School and Pathfinder Elementary would be converted and renovated to support PreK-5th grade.
District-wide Upgrades — District-wide improvements will be prioritized in each school facility with emphasis on safety and security improvements as well as technology upgrades.
The district’s current debt service levy is $1.1383 per $100 of assessed valuation and will remain unchanged if voters approve the bonds. According to the resolution calling for the vote the bonds will be retired after 20 years.
METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Voters were asked to attach the Platte County R-3 School District to the community college network, which includes Maple Woods, Penn Valley, Blue River, Longview and the Business and Technology Center. The attachment allows residents within the attached districts an approximately 50 percent discount on tuition at MCC schools. The Park Hill and North Kansas City school districts have long been a part of the MCC network.
Other districts with this measure on their April ballots are Smithville, Kearney and Liberty in the Northland. Further south, voters in the Grain Valley, Oak Grove, Raymore-Peculiar and Harrisonville districts will also see this proposal on their ballots.
As of press time, Smithville district voters denied the attachment as well.
The cost to join the MCC District was not in the ballot language, which troubled many voters, as the college tax levy is about 21 cents per $100 assessed valuation. R-3 residents would have began to pay into that pot if the ballot measure had passed.
This equates to the establishment of a new tax for residents of the Platte County School District. That district has a current tax levy of $5.01 per $100 assessed valuation and a no-tax-increase bond issue on the April 6 ballot as well.