WELLMAN

As school districts work out their certified budgets for the fiscal year beginning July 1, they must meet a new state requirement of holding a public hearing for the proposed property tax levy. However, meeting publication deadlines in this regard has become tricky, as the state has not yet set the percentage of Supplemental State Aid (SSA) to be provided to schools, a number needed to determine the property tax rate.

At their regular meeting Monday night, the Mid-Prairie school board agreed to use a projected SSA growth rate of 2% -- a conservative assumption – which puts the published property tax rate for FY24-25 at $13.18 per $1,000 of property.

“One of the things that we said to taxpayers when we went to them on the GO bond was that we would not raise their tax rate, so we’re trying to be very careful about not raising their tax rate,” Business Manager Jeff Swartzentruber said.

The board set the public hearing for the proposed property tax levy for Monday, March 25 at 6:15 p.m. at the Central Office Community Room.

Wrestling/Activity Center

Among the consent items approved at the Feb. 26 meeting was a contract with Axiom Professional Services for a due diligence survey for the Wrestling/Activity Center to be built at the High School. Superintendent Brian Stone noted that the facilities committee determined that the best location for the building would be “between the athletic facility and the press box on that hill,” and that showers were not currently part of the plan due to budget constraints.

Board member and Head Wrestling Coach Randy Billups agreed that having a larger, safer practice space for wrestlers was a greater priority than showers.

“There are some people who don’t understand why I wouldn’t just demand that we put showers in this facility. I would love to see showers in that facility. But I need the two and a half mats way more than I need the showers,” Billups said.

Community Auditorium

During the work session portion of the meeting, Marnie Schrader, representing the Fine Arts Boosters, asked the board “to make a commitment to a community auditorium.” Although long desired, a new auditorium has not yet been a part of facilities planning due to its high cost and other pressing needs.

Schrader asked the board for “a fresh start,” part of which requires “fresh language” when speaking of the auditorium, which would not just be for fine arts.

“Our entire community would benefit from an auditorium,” she said. “This is a community auditorium.”

She asked the board to make a public commitment to building an auditorium; allow the Fine Arts Boosters to publicly fundraise for it; and to make some form of financial commitment to the project.

The board thanked Schrader for her presentation but did not take any immediate action on her request.

Board Action

In the business portion of the meeting, the board passed the second reading of their Regular Meetings policy. Going forward, a business meeting will be held on the second Monday of each month, and a work session will be held the fourth Monday of each month. Both will be open to the public, but no board action will take place at the work session.

The board passed the second reading of their Public Participation in Board Meetings policy. Changes of significance here are that those wishing to address the board during public comment must notify the board secretary prior to the meeting, comments will be limited to two minutes per person, and public comments will be restricted to 30 minutes total per meeting, subject to the board president’s discretion.

The board passed a first reading of their Parental and Guardian Involvement policy. No changes were made to the policy, but annual review is required.

The board passed a resolution allowing flexibility spending of HSAP funds in the amount of $215,767.95 on any general fund expenditure.

The board set a public hearing for specifications and bids on two busses for Monday, March 11 at 6:30 p.m. The busses will not be purchased this year but need to be ordered 18 months in advance.

The Mid-Prairie school board will next meet on Monday, March 11 at 6:15 p.m. in the Central Office Community Room for a business meeting.