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USD 418 board approves community survey contract to guide facility scenarios
Summary
After staff outlined six facility scenarios, the board authorized a contract with Excellence K12 (via Inside Design Studios) to conduct community polling and online surveying, amended to a not‑to‑exceed price of $35,000; staff will use committee and survey feedback to narrow scenarios for community meetings.
The USD 418 Board of Education authorized staff to contract with Excellence K12 to conduct a community survey to inform long‑range facility planning, after administrators presented six draft scenarios for elementary, middle and high‑school configurations.
Facility staff Dwayne and Ashley walked the board through scenario options ranging from renovating and reusing the current high school plus additions (an estimated $99 million scenario in staff materials) to a full new high school and site (a higher cost scenario the presentation placed near $160 million). The presentation emphasized that elementary options were similar in cost but differ in how the district would use existing buildings; staff said utilization rates change depending on whether buildings are used in their designed configurations.
“Most of these scenarios are gonna have one of these four options as it relates to elementary schools,” Dwayne said during the presentation. He added the middle‑school options include moving Eisenhower or adding a large addition, and the high‑school options range from renovation to new construction.
Why a survey: Staff recommended a mixed approach — committee meetings, open community drop‑in sessions at the museum and high school, and a scientific telephone poll of 400 registered voters with an online option. Ashley said the phone poll delivers a +/- 5–6% margin of error and complements open online responses.
Board motion and amendment: The board moved to authorize Inside Design Studios and Excellence K12 to conduct the community survey. The original motion set a $25,000 cap. After discussion about sample size and accuracy, a board member offered a friendly amendment increasing the cap; the board approved a revised authorization not to exceed $35,000.
What staff will do next: Staff will finalize two or three scenarios based on committee input, conduct community drop‑ins (a lunchtime and an evening session at the museum were scheduled), and run the phone poll and an online survey that will be publicized to parents, staff and the wider community. Facility staff said they will bring refined square footage and cost estimates before the community sessions.
Board members emphasized the process is descriptive and meant to gather public preferences on tradeoffs — voters will later decide whether to place a bond before any project proceeds.
Ending: The board directed staff to proceed with the engagement schedule and survey contract; staff said poll results and committee rankings will inform whether a bond proposal is recommended and what scope it should have.
