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School board approves land purchase for proposed new middle school; some residents say task force didn’t prioritize site
Summary
The Cedar Rapids Community School District board voted to buy land from the Tawke family for a proposed new middle school using carryover "pebble" funds; the district said a future bond would be required to build, while some residents said the task force never prioritized a suburban middle school.
The Cedar Rapids Community School District board voted to buy a parcel from the Tawke family for a proposed new middle school, using carryover capital funds the district described as leftover "pebble" money from past projects. The board approved the purchase by roll-call vote, with all members voting aye.
The board heard a presentation from Chad Schumacher, a district staff member working on facilities, who said the purchase responds to voter feedback after the November 2023 bond referendum failed. Schumacher said a district survey of more than 60,000 voters showed uncertainty about where a replacement or new middle school would be located, and locating a site was cited as a barrier to a successful bond vote.
The district presented the parcel as suitably sized and positioned to form the northernmost middle school in a rebalanced feeder pattern, near Collins Road and Blairs Ferry Road and close to major traffic ways. The district’s demographer, Rob Schwartz of RSP, told the board the site would help…
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