Residents in the Minot Public School District still have the opportunity to vote on the current school bond proposals. Early voting is happening at the Ward County Administration building, Friday, Dec. 3 and Monday, Dec. 6 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Election Day will be at the Minot Municipal Auditorium on Dec. 7 from 7 a.m.to 7 p.m.
The ballot consists of three measures. Measure 1 is a request of $84.4 million to fund a trifold project: (1) Repurposing the old Cognizant building that was gifted to Minot Public Schools (MPS) for $10 and turning it into a high school accommodating grades 9-12, (2) Remodeling Magic City Campus into a second 9-12 high school, and (3) Converting Central Campus into an additional middle school for grades 6-8.
Measure 2 requests an additional $24.2 million for a pool and athletic complex to be added onto the new high school facility. Measure 3 would increase the debt limit from 5% of the assessed property value in the municipality to 10%, meaning MPS's current $84.4 million debt limit would increase to approximately $169.6 million.
If Measure 3 fails, then Measure 2 will not pass even if it has enough positive votes, because the additional $24.2 million for the pool would go beyond the $84.4 million debt limit required to fund Measure 1. If Measure 3 carries a yes but Measure 2 fails, then Measure 3 will still pass.
MPS Superintendent Dr. Mark Vollmer stated that these solutions will create more academic, safety, and extracurricular opportunities for students, as well as strengthen relations among all who attend these facilities.
Approval of these measures could affect property taxes, as explained in a previous article by The Dakotan. The first measure would result in an increase in property taxes by an additional $284.85 per year for homes in Minot valued at $250,000. If the second measure also passes, that number would increase to $372.25 per year. To calculate the estimated tax increases for your property, the MPS site has a Referendum Tax Calculator.
State and Federal funding will be pursued by the district, although additional funds from these sources are not guaranteed.
Information on applications for absentee ballots can be located at Ward County’s Elections page and must be postmarked by Monday, Dec. 6.
