Previous meeting took place March 3
For the Tomahawk Leader
TOMAHAWK – The School District of Tomahawk will hold a community meeting to provide information on its upcoming referendum.
The meeting will be held in the school auditorium on Tuesday, March 23, at 6 p.m. To attend the meeting virtually, visit www.tomahawk.k12.wi.us/district/referendum.cfm for online login instructions.
A previous informational meeting took place on Wednesday, March 3.
The district is pursuing a $3.25 million per-year operational referendum that would begin in the 2021-2022 school year and end in the 2024-2025 school year. The referendum will appear on ballots in the April 6, 2021 election.
Mill rate would decrease yearly, projections say
The district’s mill rate during the 2019-2020 school year was $9.31, slightly above Wisconsin’s average of $9.18. The mill rate for the current school year is $9. If the referendum is passed, the mill rate is projected to decrease by $0.07 to $8.93 for the 2021-2022 school year before decreasing each following school year until 2024-2025, when it is projected to be $8.23.
The district said the decreases would be due to “non-recurring referendum costs concluding and proposing a new debt at a lower cost.”
Operational needs, maintenance projects
The referendum would provide funding for operational needs as well as maintenance projects, the district said.
Among operational needs listed in the update that would receive funding from the referendum were maintaining current programming and course offerings; funding field trips and co-curricular activities; adhering to technology replacement schedules; purchasing software technology annually; repairing and replacing SMART Boards as needed; purchasing classroom and summer school materials; investing in staff salary and benefits packages; and maintaining current bussing routes.
The district also listed numerous maintenance projects among the proposed scope of work for the referendum, including performing annual roofing updates; resurfacing parking lots; repairing cracked sidewalks and curbs; replacing leaking urinals and achieving Americans With Disabilities (ADA) compliance; replacing cracked and broken piping; removing and abating asbestos flooring in hallways and classrooms; replacing aged and rusting lockers; replacing 20-year-old boilers with higher efficiency models; replacing aged public address and fire alarm systems; updating FACE lab equipment and layout; bringing bleachers in the old high school gym to code; and updating auditorium sound and lighting systems, as well as seating.
For more information on the School District of Tomahawk’s referendum, contact District Administrator Terry Reynolds at 715-453-5555 or [email protected], or visit www.tomahawk.k12.wi.us/district/referendum.cfm.