School Bond Issue

[Jeff Endress]

Apparently there is enough money for the district to pay the employee's portion of the pension contribution. $60 million over the next 10 years.

Apparently there is enough money to offer health plans with no meaningful deductible, co-pays or employee contribution. Cost $50 million dollars over the next ten years.

If the Board did not pay the employee pension contribution and had a reasonable health care plan they wouldn't need an operating levy or a bond issue.

But Bill, we both know that the current CONTRACT does not go out for ten years.....why is it necessary to pretend that:
1) there is no contract and we can change the labor agreement at a whim &
2) that the status quo for upcoming CONTRACTS will remain the same.

Jeff

[Jay Foran]

A few facts:

The new facilities are being constructed to improve teaching and learning!
* New facilities will provide modern classrooms and technologies for both students and staff.
* School buildings will be more safe and secure and a healthier environment in which to learn.
* Consolidating the number of schools to align with overall enrollment permits the district to operate more efficiently....allowing more money to be funneled directly into education instead of new boilers.
* Fewer buildings and modern classrooms permit the district to better manage class size to align with targets (22 for K and Grade 1 and 25 thereafter)
* The building plan insures that every student across the district will have equal opportunity/access to programming.

Property values are directly related to the strength of the school system. Due to effective financial planning, the cost per month per $100,000 of home valuation is $1.02 (less than a bottle of water). In exchange, Lakewood can convert and renovate Horace Mann and Emerson into state of the art elementary schools, modernize classrooms for 1/2 half of the high school providing much-needed science labs and vocational facilities. This represents a significant educational value.

The building plan is being completed in 3 phases because:
* All school districts are limited in their bond capacity. Lakewood cannot purchase bonds in excess of their bonded capacity
* Due to needing transition facilities throughout the full construction period, the entire plan could not be enacted on the same timing. 3 phases optimized the building process in conjunction with needed transition facilities.

Failure to pass the bond issue will mean the following:
* Sacrificing the $42 million in matching funds from the State of Ohio. This represents approximately 25% of the total construction costs. Said another way...Lakewood pays 75 cents for every $1.00 of construction. These matching monies will not be pro-rated by the State, if we fail to support all phases of construction.
* Operational cost savings will not be realized and operating costs will only increase going forward due to age of the buildings. This will create the need for increased operating cost needs (levies) going forward, with very little of that investment going into teaching and learning.
* Programming will be out of whack and not available to every student across the district. 36% of the Lakewood School District's school population will enjoy the 4 new schools next year....which means that 64% of the school population will not.
* The economic development opportunities (at the end of the construction plan) for de-commissioned school sites (McKinley, Taft, etc.) will not be realized by the community. The opportunity to convert non-tax producing sites into tax-producing sites will be lost.

I urge every responsible citizen to visit both a new school and an old school before voting day. You will see that these new facilities are being constructed to improve teaching and learning for our children.

The four new schools, plus Emerson will be open to the public on Saturdays, April 14 and 21 with tours provided on the hour. Tours will begin at 9 am, 10 am, 11 am, 12 pm and 1 pm either the new Harrison, the new Hayes, the new Harding, the new Garfield, or Emerson. Please attend.

The district has been a good steward of taxpayer money. An operating levy that was intended to last 3 years has been stretched to 6 years. The biggest portion of the building program is on time and on budget...despite signficant construction cost increases brought about by Hurricane Katrina, other natural disasters and the spiking of fuel prices.

Vote FOR Issue 4 on May 8th!

[Ivor Karabatkovic]

Ken,

I've never been to crocker park. can you fill me in; what's it like there?

A student's education is as good as the curriculum being taught and the person that does the teaching. A brand new building isn't going to make kids want to learn more, or attend school. Most of the people at LHS despise it so much that no matter how good this new building will be they still won't show up.

their loss?

[Bryan Schwegler]

Thanks for the detailed reply Jay. I found it very helpful.

[Kenneth Warren]

Ivor:

My Crocker Park experience is actually quite limited to a drive-by with Jim O'Bryan and Steve Davis and a solo pizza safari after I was told good NY style pizza could be had there.

So I brought a bad slice of pizza from an upscale trailer shack at Crocker Park and ate it in the February rain beside a glorified fire pit.

Because I had never heard you dis a trailer before, I figured you had a snooty hankering for something upscale and craved conversion of upscale pizza trailer shacks to make the homie classroom learning space more tony.

Cheers,

Kenneth Warren

[Joe Ott]

Thanks for the detailed reply Jay. I found it very helpful.

Ditto - Thanks!

[Jay Foran]

In my earlier post, I meant to address Ivor's point (see post #4 in this thread) about why is it that we are renovating the west side of the Lakewood High School building first versus the much older east side.

Ivor, the 50 Year Committee looked at all options (not only in 2002-03, but again in 2006 when the original plan was reviewed and updated). Not a stone was left unturned in determining the best possible path for the Lakewood Schools students, parents and community. Transition effectiveness (how do you continue to provide quality education in a construction environment?) was balanced with construction efficiency (what plan is most cost effective for taxpayers from both a cost and time standpoint?). Every student's educational development is of the utmost importance...and we must be especially attentive to this in this period of heavy transition.

The simple answer is that the east end of the school will be fully replaced versus the west side which will be renovated. A full replacement of the east side will cost substanially more than a renovation of the west side. Going with the more expensive side first would negate our ability to convert and renovate Horace Mann and Emerson in the same phase. This is due to the bonding capacity limits that I mentioned in my earlier post. Replacing the east end first would suck up most of our bonding capacity dollars available in Phase II....therefore not allowing us to do both Emerson and Horace Mann conversions.

However, there is much reward to the students and community from a transition and construction standpoint with our current approach. First, the renovation of the west side will put in place much needed science labs, technical classrooms and vocational facilities (many which currently reside on the east side of the building). Because this renovation can be completed in 12 months (versus 24 months for a full replacement) these critical curriculum components for our students future can be brought online faster (Fall 2008 vs. Fall 2009). Likewise, as Horace Mann and Emerson can be completed on the same timeline, a greater percentage of the Lakewood Schools District population will obtain the upgraded facilities earlier (see my 36/64% comment earlier).

The bottom line is that this path optimizes the educational rewards for Lakewood students and staff and maximizes the return on investment by the Lakewood taxpayer.

As I often say about this significant building effort and transition.....every citizen much help the community with transition and the community must help every citizen.

[dl meckes]

I won't be voting for it, and that's where we differ. but I also don't have kids. I won't be attending LHS next year either.

We don't have kids, so why should we care?

Children can be nasty, smelly, selfish little gits who are hardly civilized. And the really dinky ones can't even read and write. Think of it!

What good are they? Do they ever return the huge investment we make in them? What good are they?

What's the point? Why should I pay good money that I could use for obedience training for the dogs?

What possible value could some school kid have in the greater community?

[Jim O'Bryan]

I won't be voting for it, and that's where we differ. but I also don't have kids. I won't be attending LHS next year either.

Ivor

I cannot believe what I am reading. Mr. Iwanna Scholarship, thinks others should not have to pay for other people's education. Fascinating stance.

I have no children, but I support the schools, so that people like you can attend, learn and add to the community.

The future of any community is the schools. The quality of education does not merely tie directly to property values, it also addresses a host of other issues.

I have noticed since you were passed over on a call from Dr. Estrop last year, you have been on a real anti-school rant. Let it go, breathe fresh air again.

I understand your feelings more than you realize. This is not that war. This issue is about finishing the job we started. Schools 3/4 built is a winner for no one. Look at the bigger picture.

The problems you are looking to fight for, can start the day after the vote. You make good cases on 90% of your rhetoric. But they are very separate issues.

For the record, students like you, makes the money look like a good investment.

FWIW

[Bill Call]

But Bill, we both know that the current CONTRACT does not go out for ten years.....why is it necessary to pretend that:
1) there is no contract and we can change the labor agreement at a whim &
2) that the status quo for upcoming CONTRACTS will remain the same.

Jeff

The Lakewood School Board MIGHT demand the teachers pay the employee portion of the pension costs when the citizens of this town start saying no to further tax increases. The more likely scenario is that the Board will punish the students and parents.

The Board is projecting a 23% increase in spending on wages, pensions and health care costs over the four years.

All of those increases are controlable if they choose to control them. The board will choose to control those costs when pigs fly.

They are projecting a negative fund balance of $21 million in a few years. Are you ready for a 50% increase in property taxes?

The Plain Dealer had an interesting series on the cost of pensions and health insurance for government workers:

http://www.cleveland.com/search/index.s ... hio&coll=2

[Ivor Karabatkovic]

The beauty of the democratic system in the US is that you can draw your own conclusions, and change your mind as many times as you wish.

I don't think I'll be voting this spring, but in the fall. If the issue passes, great. If not, I won't be able to say I ruined the future of my children who I want to keep here in lakewood.

[Ivor Karabatkovic]

My concern is that one levy will lead to another, to another, to another. Pretty soon I won't be able to afford to open a business and invest here in Lakewood because I'll be paying huge taxes on property and business.

I probably have all of this wrong. But oh well, there's always chicago for me.

dl,

To tell you the truth, seldom does a great individual emerge out of communities. Personally speaking, I doubt what I and my peers can bring to the table after high school. most of my classmates are lazy druggies that just don't care. The next two years after that don't look too promising either.

What possible value could some school kid have in the greater community?

A ton of value, if they cared about the community they lived in.
How many high school students post on the observation deck regularily. How many engage in conversations and discussions, even if they are completely wrong with what they think. Sure, there are plenty of students that volunteer and do things for the community, but only because it looks good on their transcripts. They need to meet certain hours of volunteering to get into certain schools, you know.

What can a foreign photographer bring to the community? nothing, i suppose. but that doesn't stop me.

[Ivor Karabatkovic]

Mr.Foran,

I also found your detailed report very helpful. I'm sure that the BOE wants the very best for everyone, students and tax payers.

I've never gotten used to the school system here, and the way things work in the United States. As a war refugee in Germany, I was denied my education past the fourth grade, and Lakewood City Schools provided me with plenty of tutoring time to learn english.

The German form of education and the US form of education are completely different. Because I was introduced to the german way of teaching/learning I preffer that one over the US way. I just never converted to your way of doing things.

Here students are brought up, and many ask "why?"
there, students are brought up to say "why not?"


(had to dig through my magic book to find that quote)

[Danielle Masters]

What can a foreign photographer bring to the community? nothing, i suppose. but that doesn't stop me.

Hope for the future, that is what you bring. Please don't lose faith in the importance you hold to this community. BTW I have been meaning to tell you that I lreally like your photos hanging in the Beck Center. They caught my eye two weeks ago and I knew before looking at your name they were yours. You have an amazing eye for photography. Thanks for being who you are, keep it up.

[dl meckes]

dl,
Personally speaking, I doubt what I and my peers can bring to the table after high school. most of my classmates are lazy druggies that just don't care. The next two years after that don't look too promising either....

What can a foreign photographer bring to the community? nothing, i suppose. but that doesn't stop me.

Ivor - Trust me when I tell you that there are plenty of people who didn't ... live up to their potential before, during, and after High School.

It doesn't mean that they stayed deactivated forever.

What do you bring to the community? More than you can imagine.

Some people like to gamble. I'm not much of a gambler, but even I have to take a chance that keeping our school system strong is going to pay off in the long run.

So you won't vote this spring because you want to back away from making a decision? You're usually pretty good at defending your decisions. I didn't expect you to melt away.