JEFFERSONVILLE — Registered voters and property owners in Jeffersonville will have their say on the proposed new elementary school in downtown Jeffersonville.
The issue stems from a memo written last summer, in which Greater Clark County Schools superintendent Andrew Melin outlined plans to close Maple and Spring Hill elementary schools, which serve downtown Jeffersonville students. The public outcry was fierce, but Melin maintained that the cost of operating aging facilities with dwindling enrollment was a burden on the district and the educational opportunities lacking at those schools was unfair to the students.
Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore pleaded with the district to keep at least one school downtown and if it couldn't be Spring Hill or Maple, then he suggested building a new school. Melin conceded and a plan for new construction was designed. In January, a tactical team made up of representatives from the city, school district and downtown neighborhoods recommended that the district build on the corner of Meigs and Court avenues.
The board accepted the recommendation and voted to issue the bonds needed for the project, but the price tag — nearly $15 million — gives the community the chance to weigh in via petition remonstrance.
The Clark County Clerk’s Office verified that 567 signatures gathered belong to registered voters on Thursday. A minimum of 500 signatures were needed for the issue to move into the petition remonstrance phase, according to Clark County Clerk Susan Popp. The signatures will be given to the auditor’s office, which will check to see if they belong to property owners. Even though the threshold of 500 has been met, the office needs a true count of signatures gathered, Popp said.
A 30-day “cooling-off” period commences after the signatures are verified and before the petition remonstrance drive can begin, according to Popp.
Once it does, both sides will have 31 days to gather signatures for their cause. Though there’s a variety of opinions on the issue, the petitions are cut and dry: you sign one either for or against the district issuing nearly $15 million in bonds to fund the construction of one downtown elementary school. If a greater number of signatures are against issuing bonds, the school district would have to wait one year before attempting the process again. If a greater number of signatures favor issuing the bonds, the school district may proceed with the project.
The $15 million would go toward rehabilitating the building at Meigs and Courts avenues, where the original Jeffersonville High School gym still stands and which served as Corden Porter School a few years ago. The building would house 550 students and connect with John H. Schnatter Nachand Fieldhouse, saving the district the cost of constructing a new gym. If the bonds were to pass, property taxes would increase from 90 to 95 cents per $100 assessed valuation. The bonds would take 20 years to pay off.
“We are very committed to making sure we build a downtown elementary. We’ve been through this process before,” Melin said. “We respect the fact that there are people who don’t agree, but we believe it’s absolutely vital and the community as a whole will support a downtown elementary. It’s our intention to go forward and gather signatures against the individuals who are not in support of the project in hopes that we will prevail.”
Moore also says he'll be working to garner support and gather signatures, saying "I will lead the charge ... I will be knocking on doors, getting signatures. This to me is the most important campaign of my life. It’s going to be a very legs-on-the-ground, feet-on-the-ground effort. I will be out every single night collecting signatures. Don’t bet against me.”