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Residents press Jacksonville SD 117 on affordability, question facility spending as taxes rise
Summary
At the Dec. 18 levy hearing residents raised affordability concerns and asked about new building projects and the fate of older elementary schools; reporter Ben Cox suggested demolitions of deteriorated houses may shift the tax burden, a point the superintendent agreed with.
During public comment at the Dec. 18 hearing, Marjorie Peterson spoke about personal hardship from rising property taxes and asked the board, "when will it stop?" She also questioned why the district continued to spend on new buildings and what is being done with older elementary-school buildings.
Ben Cox, a reporter with WLDS, asked whether demolition of deteriorated houses in Morgan County could be contributing to higher tax bills for owners of maintained properties, saying the issue may mean "that tax burden is being pushed onto the tax payers who take care of their properties." Superintendent Ptacek agreed with Mr. Cox's assessment during the hearing. The board did not record any policy action in this hearing in response to those concerns; the proceeding served as the Truth-in-Taxation public hearing and a forum for comment.
