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Details of proposed mill levy override to run new Steamboat Springs school revealed

Teresa Ristow

Residential tax impacts for home with $431,000 market value:

Current school tax bill: $577

Tax bill with $92 million bond to fund C.2: $781

Tax bill with bond and full mill levy override: $860

Impact per $100,000 of assessed value:

Current school tax bill: $134

Tax bill with $90 million bond: $183

Tax bill with $90 million bond and full mill levy override: $200

($90 million bond projections were most recent available to illustrate impacts per $100,000)

Tax impacts are estimates based upon current assessed values. All impacts are multiplied by 3.64 for commercial properties.

— The cost to expand and update the Steamboat Springs School District is becoming clearer.

If a discussed ballot measure and mill levy override to fund a new high school and districtwide updates are approved by voters in November, the average homeowner could see school-related property taxes increase by $221 next year and by $287 total within a few years.

Preliminary figures released by the Steamboat Springs School District in the past week describe how an annual $1.98 million mill levy override would be used to operate a newly constructed high school and newly established elementary school.



The mill levy would be in addition to a proposed $92 million bond referendum the school board plans to finalize in August.

The MLO would only aim to generate $327,500 in its first year, as the district begins construction, $700,000 during the second year and $1.98 million during the third year and beyond, when the new high school is operational and elementary students have moved into their new campus at the current Steamboat Springs Middle School.



“These calculations will likely change between now and August as we review some of the questions the board had last night,” Superintendent Brad Meeks said Tuesday.

The board asked for more information Monday to help decide whether to move the district headquarters outside of the Seventh Street location and whether to update the cafeteria at Strawberry Park Elementary.

If funded the full $1.98 million annually, the MLO would cover the cost of the salaries and benefits of a new elementary school principal and assistant principal, office manager and clerical position. It would also pay for seven custodians, two maintenance staff and two nutritional services staff at the new high school site and an office assistant for the maintenance, operations and transportation department to free up the department director for new responsibilities.

The MLO would also pay for five new teaching staff districtwide to accommodate increasing enrollment.

“A lot of these costs are staff driven, which is reflective of our enrollment increasing,” Meeks said. “It’s going to take people to run the building.”

Estimated costs to keep utilities running would account for about $360,000 annually, new and redirected transportation routes would account for $100,000 and maintenance, including capital costs, operations and supplies and groundskeeping and snow removal, would total $185,500 each year.

During the first year of the MLO, only the salaries of the transportation department office assistant, two custodians and one maintenance staff would be accounted for, as well as scaled-back costs for utility use and groundskeeping and snow removal. During the second year, the elementary principal would be hired, along with two more custodians and a second maintenance employee, Costs for utilities and groundskeeping and snow removal would also increase in the second year.

The hiring of custodians would be phased in based upon the existing need for one additional custodial staff member and to avoid hiring seven custodians at once during year three.

The mill levy override would be in addition to MLOs approved in 2001 to fund one-time teacher raises and in 2006 to attract and retain quality staff, the latter of which now raises $800,000 annually as of 2015.

There has been discussion about the proposed bond wrapping around existing bonds, including the most recent $29.7 million issue to fund the reconstruction of Soda Creek Elementary in 2006.

To reach Teresa Ristow, call 970-871-4206, email tristow@SteamboatToday.com or follow her on Twitter @TeresaRistow


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