Fraser Schools bond measure to go on May ballots

FRASER — The Fraser School District will be asking residents to approve a bond measure this spring.

At their regular meeting on Jan. 23, the school board unanimously approved putting the measure before the voters in May.

District officials stressed that bond measures are not increases in taxes; they are the civic body — in this case the schools district — asking voters for permission to borrow money which it then pays back with interest through its existing income.

“It will be for $59 million, and it will be paid back through the taxes already being levied so there will be no increase,” said Superintendent Carrie Wozniak. “It’s going to be the May elections when it goes before voters, and the date will be Tuesday, May 2. It’s all Fraser residents and some residents in Clinton Township and Roseville (who can vote on this measure).”

Scott Wallace, the board president, said that determining if now was the right time to ask for such a bond was the biggest question the board considered when voting.

“You have to look at prices and interest rates,” he said. “However, there is a pressing need. Things like HVAC systems have a lifespan and we’ve already squeezed more life out of them than we were supposed to. They need to be replaced.”

Wozniak said that there are a few major projects the district hopes to use the funds from the bond for should it pass.

“Right now, a lot of our buildings have mechanical and parking lot issues,” she said. “This was a good time to go to our community and ask for this bond. We also want to add an additional layer of security to our facilities. Most of the buildings are over 60 years old, so updates are needed.”

She added that a timeline on specific improvements is tricky but they know what they are going to prioritize and plan to begin the improvements shortly after the bond is approved.

“Our top priority is replacing the mechanical units that need repair like heating and cooling units so the buildings are properly heated, ventilated and so forth,” said Wozniak. “The next major issue is safety. We know a lot of people in the community are concerned about school security in general and we want to ensure we are continuing to address those concerns.”

Wallace said that there simply isn’t enough money left over for any significant improvements after addressing the district’s regular budget. The projects they hope to implement would require a significant amount of funding to be available all at once.

“The money that we get from the federal government and state, roughly 90% goes to instruction, healthcare and salaries, while the other 10% goes to keeping the lights on and basic daily costs,” he said. “Any additional major programs require taking a bond out. We always try to ensure there are no tax increases, but a bond means that we can still get that lump sum money for projects.”

Wozniak added that the district plans to take the bond money out in two phases to hopefully reduce the amount of interest they would need to pay back on the bond.

We will be selling our bonds in two series so we will do the work on the first set of bonds and then go back in three years or so to try and reduce our interest rates on the bonds.”

Wozniak hopes voters will see how necessary these projects are and the difference they can make to the district and, by extension, the Fraser community.

“Our community in Fraser is very proud of our schools,” she said. “We work very hard to maintain that level of excellence and part of that is maintaining our buildings and facilities. We want our schools to be well maintained. Having these bonds passed are crucial to that. Families can take pride that their children will not only get a quality education but be taught in a proper facility.”

“Residents, students and employees should be able to take pride in our schools,” added Wallace. “This will help ensure that remains the truth.”