To build or not to build – Geary County residents will soon have the opportunity to vote on a new Junction City High School project.
The proposal, as laid before voters, will include a new school at a new site with a cost not to exceed $105 million and no increase to the mil levy.
State aid along with Federal Impact Aid will be used to fund the project, that District officials have stated will not increase the mil levy. State Aid is received only after a bond issue passes in a community, Federal Impact Aid is a little more certain according to Witt.
“It’s been one of the best supported programs at the Federal level for many years, and having Sen. Jerry Moran on the committee for the allocations is very exciting for our community,” said Witt.
USD 475 is one of five Districts in Kansas seeking State Aid.Dr. Corbin Witt, USD 475 Superintendent of Schools, said that officials will be financially responsible with a new school project.
“We may be able to [build it] cheaper – that is our maximum – but we our going to do our due diligence to make it a quality high school, but financially responsible,” said Witt.
If voters approve the bond issue for a new high school, the next step in the process would be to construct an official design and layout.
“About 9 months will be spent on the design concept, right now we don’t have any designs or anything – [it] is just based on average cost per foot, is what has been put out as far as cost; so we’ll start the process of designing a new high school and all of the facilities to go along with that – the practice fields, the sports complexes, things like that,” said Witt.
An ideal school according to Witt would have a lot of natural light (to help with education), wider hallways for safety, secure entrances, and a larger auditorium amongst other things.
In order to complete the project as desired, approximately 100 acres of land would need to be acquired. “Anybody that has some land in that vicinity (100 acres) that they want to sell, we want to talk to them.”
A bond issue election has been set for Tuesday, May 9th. Voters must approve the new school project in the polls that day in order for the state to provide the 48% aid necessary to complete the project.