Latest / Kendall County News - Shaw Local / Voters supporting Oswego District 308 referendum by a wide margin

Transcript

Voters supporting Oswego District 308 referendum by a wide margin · Kendall County News - Shaw Local

• 0:05
  Voters supporting Oswego District 308 referendum by a wide margin. Written
• 0:11
  by Eric Shelkov. This article is being read by an automated voice
• 0:16
  brought to you by Everlet. A wide majority of The voters in
• 0:20
  Kendall, Will and Kane are supporting Oswego School District
• 0:24
  308 317 million bond referendum to address infrastructure, safety
• 0:31
  and security, and educational improvements throughout the district is leading. District 308
• 0:37
  serves portions of all three counties. The referendum is leading by a
• 0:41
  large percentage according to the votes counted so far. Thank you. Oswego,
• 0:46
  Montgomery, Aurora, Plainfield, Joliet, and Yorkville. District 308 Superintendent Andalib
• 0:52
  Kelgadi said in a statement. We are grateful for the community's support
• 0:56
  in passing this referendum. It means a lot knowing we are now
• 1:00
  able to refresh our spaces with new flooring, prevent further water damage
• 1:05
  in classrooms, and most importantly, make sure we have the technology needed
• 1:09
  to ensure our students and staff remain safe. With one hundred percent
• 1:13
  of the precincts counted in Kendall County, 3,212 residents, or 64.30,
• 1:21
  voted yes, while 1,560 residents, or 35.94, voted
• 1:27
  no. In Will County, with all precincts reporting, results showed voters approving
• 1:33
  the measure by a 67.3 to 32.69 margin. In
• 1:39
  early voting in Kane County, 163 residents voted yes and 52 residents
• 1:44
  voted no. The referendum dedicates 79 of funds to critical infrastructure
• 1:51
  upgrades, including improvements to HVAC systems and roof replacement. Flooring, plumbing,
• 1:57
  electrical, and building exterior improvements are also being proposed. The referendum also
• 2:03
  includes 38 million in safety and security improvements Planned improvements include
• 2:09
  installing secure entrances where doors stay unlocked and visitor interaction happens away
• 2:14
  from student spaces. District 308 has said modern access controls would also
• 2:19
  be installed where an alert would sound for any door left open
• 2:22
  or unlocked, and doors would lock and unlock on a set time
• 2:26
  schedule. Other planned improvements include updated camera systems and digital intercoms that
• 2:32
  would reach every classroom and outdoor space for weather alerts and emergencies,
• 2:36
  District 308 said. The district had a facility assessment done of its
• 2:42
  22 schools. School district officials said almost 70 percent of the schools
• 2:47
  were built between 2001 and 2008, and are now reaching the age
• 2:52
  where major systems need replacement. The district quickly expanded from just six
• 2:57
  schools to 22 schools to meet the rapid growth in Oswego in
• 3:01
  the late 1990s and early 2000s. Seventeen new schools were built in
• 3:06
  just 12 years. The district's enrollment surged from about 4,000 students in
• 3:12
  1992 to more than 17,000 students in 2013. Because the district is
• 3:18
  retiring existing long-term debt at the same time, homeowners would see a
• 3:23
  decrease in the debt service portion of their property taxes. Even if
• 3:27
  the referendum is approved, officials said. For a home with a fair
• 3:31
  market value of 300,000, residents would pay about 100 less per year
• 3:37
  starting in 2028 and an additional 56 less beginning in 2036,
• 3:44
  the district said.