By Seth Boyes,
Unofficial election night tallies show the $38 million bond proposed by Decorah Community Schools has been approved by voters. A total of 5,087 voters supported the measure Tuesday for almost 67 percent of the vote — the measure needed more than 60 percent in order to pass. A total of 2,536 Winneshiek County voters cast ballots against the measure, along with two voters from neighboring Allamakee County. The expected funds will be used to construct a new elementary building, which will replace the aging John Cline Elementary on Claiborne Drive south of Decorah High School.
“I couldn’t be more excited for what’s ahead for the Decorah community,” said Decorah Community School District Board President Cindy Goodner. John Cline Elementary welcomed its first group of students in 1964, but the building has been showing its age for a number of years. Decorah Superintendent Tim Cronin, who was hired by the school district in 2022, said officials had previously deferred on a number of maintenance items — including the building’s now-leaky roof — for years, believing a new elementary building was on the proverbial horizon. The building doesn’t meet many current standards and, like many buildings of the 1960s, it contains asbestos. Additions to the elementary were constructed in the 1990s, which Cronin previously said cocooned some older portions of the building, and inadequate classroom space continues to be an issue inside the elementary.
Preliminary plans for the new elementary call for a two-story structure capable of bringing the district’s pre-K classes — currently housed in the West Side Elementary building — under the same roof. Security would also be improved at the new elementary, according to officials, as preliminary plans show a secure entry vestibule on its northeast corner. The proposed elementary would feature a separate 600-800 seat gym and a 55,000 square-foot commons area. John Cline’s gymnasium also serves as the building’s lunch room, which Cronin said limits scheduling of certain classes and can present additional challenges if Mother Nature demands students stay inside during the recess period.
School officials have also factored for the potential growth of the student body, pencilling in what was described as flex spaces — instruction areas which can serve as additional classrooms if and when an incoming grade level is particularly large. Cronin said Decorah’s district-wide enrollment is steady at approximately 1,600 students. The superintendent said Decorah Schools is the largest school district in the six-county area, and it has a net gain of 85 students through open enrollment.
Voters in the school district voted earlier this year to renew the school’s revenue purpose statement, which outlines how the district will use 1-cent sales tax funds from the state. Cronin said the statement will now be extended to 2051 and gives the district a leg up in bonding against the expected tax revenue. Decorah area voters also previously approved an increase in the school district’s debt service levy limit. The proposed $38 million bond is expected to collect an additional 86 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value. School officials indicated the average home in Decorah would see a tax increase of $7.96 per month, or $95.47 each year until the bond is paid off. Cronin said the $38 million bond is expected to be paid over a 20-year period at 5 percent interest, which the superintendent said may come down, and he noted Decorah Schools has been able to pay off previous bonds ahead of schedule.
Cronin previously said he expects the elementary project’s design phase will last 10 months, and the district will be able to call for contractor bids in September of 2025. Construction would then be slated to start in March of 2026, and the building could potentially be complete by the fall of 2027.
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