Urbandale District Seeks $59M To Close 4 Schools, Build 2

URBANDALE, IA — In approximately a month, Urbandale residents will vote on whether to support a school district plan to close four elementary buildings an replace them with two new schools. Voters go to the polls on Feb. 6 to decide on the $59 million bond referendum that would also accelerate the construction timeline for a new high school fitness center and provide money for construction of either an addition to Webster Elementary School or Urbandale High School.

The district's facilities plan if the bond vote passes would "retire" Jensen, Olmsted, Rolling Green and Valerius elementary buildings — all built in the 1950's and '60s and determined to have outlived their 40- to 50-year life expectancy — and replace them with two new four-section elementary schools on the Olmsted and Valerius sites. That would result in four elementary schools throughout the district. Each would have preschool; year-round classes would move to Karen Acres Elementary School.

If the bond vote passes, construction would begin on the high school fitness center in spring 2019, followed by construction of the first elementary building that summer, to open in fall 2021. Construction of the second elementary would start in summer 2023, with a fall 2025 opening.

Officials say if the bond vote fails, they would continue under the current practice of updating schools as money is available. Retrofitting existing elementary buildings to 21st century standards would take place on one building at a time, approximately five years apart, which would mean completion districtwide would be pushed out to 2036. The high school fitness center project would be delayed until 2028.

Yet even if the bond vote fails, schools are likely to close, officials said in information about the bond vote: "The district will need to reduce the number of schools even if the referendum were to fail. We simply cannot continue to operate six elementary schools."

Urbandale officials say that the plan to build two schools to replace four "optimizes school resources, creates equity throughout the district, enhances technology and security, and provides greater 21st century spaces and learning opportunities for all K-12 students."

"Over time it will cost more to maintain six elementary schools than to build two new schools," information about the referendum on the district website says. "Within the next four to six years, the district would likely be faced with the need to close at least one school due to the inefficiencies of staffing and programming six small elementary buildings."

District officials project that closing two schools would free up $1.8 million a year that could be used to provide resources for enhanced 21st century programming and technology at all grade levels, while reducing class sizes at the middle school and high school.

Since November, Superintendent State Bass and other district officials have been explaining the bond referendum at meetings throughout the community. Those opportunities will continue over the next month. A community forum will be held at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 23 in the Urbandale High School Media Center.

The forum will include a presentation by Bass and an explanation of the design process by DLR Group. Information is available on the district website about the bond vote and construction plans. In addition, school representatives will be at the following events to talk about the plan:

• Jan. 4: Karen Acres Elementary PTO, 7 p.m.
• Jan. 9: Webster Elementary PTO, 6:30 p.m.
• Jan. 9: UHS basketball games, 7:30 p.m.
• Jan. 10: Meeting with past school board members, 7 p.m.
• Jan. 11: Valerius Elementary PTO, 7 p.m.
• Jan. 17: Urbandale Chamber luncheon, 11:30 a.m.
• Jan. 18: Urbandale Lioness Club, 6:15 p.m.
• Jan. 19: NW Des Moines Rotary Club at Urbandale Golf & Country Club, 11:45 a.m.
• Jan. 23: Community Forum, UHS Media Center, 6:30 p.m.
• Jan. 24: Kiwanis at Urbandale Golf & Country Club, 11:45 a.m.
• Jan. 25: UMS 6th/7th Gr Band Concert at UHS Performing Arts Center, 7 p.m.
• Jan. 29: Urbandale Public Library, 6:30 p.m.
• Feb. 1: UHS wrestling meet, 6 p.m.
• Feb. 2: Fort Dodge basketball games, starting at 4:45 p.m.
• Feb. 5: UHS conferences, 4 to 6:30 p.m.
• Feb. 5: UMS PTO meeting, 7 p.m.

Urbandale school district officials say each of the buildings in the district had a life expectancy of 40 to 50 years. The schools projected to close if the bond is approved were built as follows:

• Olmsted: 1952
• Jensen: 1963
• Valerius: 1963
• Rolling Green: 1968

Passage of the $59 million bond would increase property taxes by 25 cents per $1,000 of taxable valuation. For a home with the average assessed value of $240,000, that would amount to about $33 a year in additional property tax payments.

District officials say passage of the bond referendum will complete the district's construction needs for the next 50 years. A decision on how to use the closed Jensen and Rolling Green schools would be left to future school board members in place at the time the buildings are vacated.