Brillion School District needs referendum vote for repairs

February 2, 2018

By David Nordby The Brillion News

BRILLION – The Brillion School District will be looking for a “yes” vote from the community on April 3 to complete the third and final phase of building renovations for the elementary/middle school.

The Brillion School Board approved going to referendum in April at the January school board meeting. The phase includes upgrading the HVAC system in the building and renovating the downstairs middle school locker room and old cafeteria area.

“This is the final piece. It’s kind of what we’ve been working on since 2008, and how we planned it,” Brillion Superintendent Dominick Madison said. “There’s no new construction going on.”

Lighting, doors, roofing and existing infrastructure issues would also be addressed. Madison says that the project is not anything glamorous.

“The scope of this project is just going to be upgrading and renovating existing,” Madison said. “It’s all just stuff that has to be done.”

The $5.6 million project would replace existing debt that is being paid off. Taxes will still go down if the project is approved by the voters, Madison says.

“We’ve tried to align this all so that when we get to the final part, we can finish it and not raise taxes,” he said.

The debts of the high school will come off the books in 2018. Madison added that the school has restructured the debt of the school in the past to keep tax impact manageable.

The school held community input sessions in December. Madison likened the school repairs to home repairs.

“Your home doesn’t fall down,” Madison said. “If it doesn’t pass, we’re still going to have school.”

Madison says the school plans to continue to communicate with the public in the coming weeks, specifically through the school’s newsletter. Madison says that the debt structure is complicated but he is willing to answer any questions that citizens might have.

This story was printed in the February 1, 2018 edition of The Brillion News.