Vote '24

Coldwater school district seeks levy

COLDWATER - Voters in the Coldwater Exempted Village Schools district will see a five-year, additional 0.5% traditional income tax on the Nov. 5 general election ballot.

The levy would bump up the existing 0.5% traditional income tax to 1%.

The 0.5% traditional income tax levy was first passed by voters in 1999 and currently generates about $1 million annually, according to school treasurer Jenn McCoy.

If passed, the increased tax would raise an additional $1.3 million for current expenses, she had said.

A previous levy proposal shot down by 71% of voters at the March 19 primary election called for replacing the 0.5% traditional income tax with a 1.75% earned income tax. It would have applied only to employee compensation and net earnings from self-employment.

In the aftermath of its failure, school board members agreed to make a second levy attempt, this time going with an additional 0.5% traditional income tax.

They also have attempted to better communicate the potentially dire need for extra funds should any of the repairs or upgrades become an issue for the district, which officials have stated could happen at any time.

The funds would go toward general operating expenses, with a focus on the district's ongoing "unfunded priorities," numerous capital improvements that need to be undertaken, some sooner than later.

Some of the ongoing and potentially dire "unfunded priorities" are worn-out middle school carpet, cracked bricks on the school exterior, aging gymnasium floors, old windows sealed shut due to leaks, a near-obsolete fleet of school vehicles, corroding cast iron pipes and many other upgrades that will need attention in the near future, according to school officials.

School officials at last month's third public forum reported that the current unfunded, past due infrastructure priorities total $99,000. The district's unfunded infrastructure priorities that could become a problem at any time total $1.68 million.

Technology needs for 2025 are $268,970 and yearly/any time instructional needs are $659,066.

Superintendent Doug Mader explained that the unfunded infrastructure priorities that are due "any time" are issues that have gone past their lifetime and "we're lucky they're still working."

"It could fail at any moment within the next three years because we have the manuals, our maintenance programs, the people that come in inspect things, they give us the lifespan of certain items," he said.

More information on the levy and the district's financials can be found on the "pro-levy" committee's website at cavslevy.org.