Cedar Rapids board presented revised $117 million bond package; final vote scheduled May 12

Cedar Rapids Community School District staff on Monday told the Board of Education they have revised a proposed bond package from $210.6 million to $117 million and will ask the board to consider final approval at its May 12 meeting, with a potential November 4 ballot if the board moves forward.

The scaled-back plan removes a previously proposed new middle school and focuses on renovations: a substantial renovation of McKinley Middle School (no classroom addition that would move Franklin), converting Wilson into an elementary school and renovating Roosevelt to accept those students, and targeted work at Kennedy High School including cafeteria and freshman-academy upgrades. District staff said the revisions aim to preserve historic buildings while addressing aging systems, enrollment shifts and building accessibility.

District staff said the bond would draw from three distinct facility funding “buckets”: the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) for maintenance, the SAVE (Secure an Advanced Vision for Education) sales-tax fund for projects, and bond proceeds for larger capital projects. Chad (district staff) told the board the new $117 million proposal would raise the district’s property-tax rate by about $1.07 per $1,000 of taxable value. The district estimated the tax impact for a $200,000 home at roughly $89.60 per year ($7.47 per month).

Why it matters: many district buildings are more than 60 years old, several are over 100 years old, and staff said the district carries about 1,600 empty middle-school seats across the system—approximately the equivalent of two middle schools—creating an annual operating cost the district seeks to reduce by consolidating and rightsizing facilities.

Staff framed the revised plan as an effort to balance building needs with taxpayer capacity to pay. They said community feedback drove the changes: after the initial proposal, task-force and public input favored preserving historic schools and lowering the total ask. District presenters said they held 15 public meetings in April and spoke with about 450 internal stakeholders; a summary of that outreach showed 67.8% support for the revised plan, 11.3% opposed and 20.9% undecided among those internal respondents.

District presenters also said the $117 million scenario would produce an operating savings estimate of about $6,480,000 per year (roughly $140,800,000 over 20 years), which the presentation described as part of the long-term financial case for consolidation and renovation.

Task-force and classroom perspectives: Melissa Davis, a teacher who splits time between Wilson and Roosevelt, told the board a unified building would reduce travel time, make scheduling and after-school support more equitable, and eliminate repeated sub coverage that currently interrupts instruction.

Board members and staff emphasized next steps rather than an immediate vote. The board was told the superintendent’s community cabinet, the Economic Alliance and district teams will continue outreach and polling; staff recommended the board consider the revised plan at the May 12 meeting and, if approved, begin signature-gathering and an information campaign ahead of a November vote.

No bond was approved Monday; the presentation was an update and request for the board’s consideration at the May meeting. If the board places the bond on the ballot and voters approve it, the district would use bond proceeds in conjunction with PPEL and SAVE funds to complete the listed projects.

Details and context: district staff highlighted that PPEL is a property-tax levy used for maintenance and some capital purchases, and SAVE is a sales-tax fund meant for capital projects; neither PPEL nor SAVE can be used for teacher salaries or general operating expenses. District presenters also noted Cedar Rapids remains among the lower tax-rate districts in Linn County and that the proposed increase would keep the district near the county’s lower range.

What’s next: the board is scheduled to consider final action on the revised proposal at its May 12 meeting. District staff said they will continue outreach and expect an Economic Alliance poll of broader community sentiment before the board’s next meeting.