LAWTON – Voters in the Cache school district authorized the district on Tuesday to issue $36.36 million in bonds for an expansion of Cache Middle School, construction of a new fieldhouse and upgrades to the district’s transportation fleet.
Two separate bond issues, one for $35.36 million and one for $1 million, were on the ballot. Both bond issues garnered than 60% of the vote, which is required for school bond issues to succeed.
The larger bond issue passed easily, with 63.64% of voters in favor of the measure and 36.36% against it, according to unofficial results from the Oklahoma State Election Board. The smaller bond issue also succeeded, with 69.87% of voters supporting the measure and 30.13% against it.
Superintendent Chad Hance was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.
District officials plan to expand the middle school by adding four new classrooms, two science labs, a commons area, a seminar room, a library and office space. The district will also remodel middle school classrooms and bathrooms, create a new parking area and add a pick-up/drop-off lane for the fifth/sixth-grade center and the middle school.
The middle school project is expected to cost about $15.85 million. Officials also plan to tear down the existing fieldhouse and replace it with a new one on the same site, which will cost approximately $19.51 million.
Funding for the middle school expansion and the new fieldhouse will come from the $36.35 million bond issue. Proceeds from the $1 million bond issue will be used to buy new buses.
The district plans to buy two or three new buses every few years over the life of the 13-year bonds.
How will it affect taxpayers?
Passage of the two bond issues will affect property owners’ annual tax bills.
Property owners who live within the district’s boundaries will see their annual tax bills increase by about 6.9% from their current level, according to the district’s website. That translates to an annual increase of $6.96.
For example, property owners who currently pay $1,000 in property taxes each year will see their tax bills increase to $1,069.58.
The district’s mill levy will also change because of the bond issues’ passage.
The mill levy was set at 30.28 mills in 2019 and dropped slightly, to 29.09 mills, the following year. The 2021 mill levy was set at 28.49 mills.
But because the bond issues succeeded, the mill levy will rise to about 29.96 mills – which is still lower than it was in 2019.
Caption 101: This artist’s rendering shows a floor plan, a site plan and a model of the exterior for Cache Public Schools’ proposed expansion of Cache Middle School. Voters on Tuesday approved two separate bond issues, totaling $36.36 million, to finance the middle school expansion, construction of a new fieldhouse and upgrades to the district’s bus fleet. Courtesy Cache Public Schools.
Caption 102: This artist’s rendering shows a floor plan, a model of the exterior and a site plan for Cache Public Schools’ new fieldhouse. Voters on Tuesday approved two bond issues, totaling $36.36 million, to finance construction of the fieldhouse, expansion of Cache Middle School and upgrades to the district’s transportation fleet. Courtesy Cache Public Schools