West Central Area Schools
Serving the communities
of Barrett, Elbow Lake, Hoffman, Kensington & Wendell
October 15, 2021
Greetings WCA Families:
The WCA Board of Education has concluded their schedule
of five Informational Meetings for the Building Bond Referendum. Video recordings of the meetings and many
other sources of information are available on the District website. During the five informational meetings, similar
questions have been asked and Board members have fielded other common questions
in their conversations with individuals or other small groups.
Several of the most commonly asked, and pertinent,
questions are answered below.
Q: Will the city of Hoffman residents see an additional tax
increase as a result of the bond referendum? A: No. City
water and sewer lines already exist at the location of the proposed new South
Elementary site. Water, sewer, and power from these existing lines to the new
building is included in the proposed bond costs.
Q: Does the city of Hoffman have the water and sewer capacity to
add a school or will that need to be updated? A: An update is not needed, they have the
capacity to add the school within their current infrastructure.
Q: Is Hoffman
going to put in sidewalks if this passes? A: Sidewalks
on school property are included in the total bond cost.
Q: When was the last time our school district had a significant
tax increase? A: Voters approved an
Operating Levy increase from $1,370 per pupil to the current level of $1,851 in
2014. The most recent operating levy was
a “revoke and renew” meaning the per pupil amount of $1,851 remained the same
as the last operating levy.
Q: When was
the building bond for the Secondary School referendum paid off? A: February of 2014.
Q: How do you think the upcoming operating levy will be affected
by this referendum passing or not passing? A: WCA has had a balanced budget of
approximately $10M per year. With the proposed referendum, the
renovation/addition at North Elementary, the new South Elementary, and the
secondary school program expansions (such as ag, shop space, STEAM space,
fitness center and tennis court renovation) do not increase the number of staff
members needed for the programs we currently have, but provide needed space for
the programs we have that are growing.
The District has estbliche a modest General Fund Balance and a proposal
to renew the existing amount, without an increase, is anticipated.
Q: The levy expires next year - will it be raised then? A: The
existing levy expires in two years, however the Board of Education will often
propose to place the levy referendum on ballots in year four of a five year
levy to allow for two opportunities to pass the levy referendum before
expiration of the existing levy. We are
not anticipating anything more than a modest increase in General Fund expenses
so an Operating Levy increase is unlikely.
Q: Is it true
that the district has one of the highest operating levies? A: Yes, WCA does have a high operating levy
in comparison to some of the other districts in our state, but that is
something the taxpayers have supported to maintain our programs, opportunities,
and high level of accomplishment.
Q: What will
the cost per acre be for farmers after the AAg2School credit and with interest
of the bond included? For ag land valued at $6,000 per acre, if all three questions were
to pass, the tax impact would be $2.88 per acre for land classified as ag
homestead and $5.75 per acre for land classified as ag non-homestead for taxes
payable in 2022. The Ag2School credit increases from 60% to 70% next year, so
for taxes payable in 2023, the cost per acre will decrease from $2.88 to $2.16
for ag homestead and will decrease from $5.75 to $4.31 for ag non-homestead
land valued at $6,000 per acre. Examples of per acre cost for $5,000, $6,000
and $7,000 acre values can be found on the school website or in the printed
information brochure that was mailed out.
Q: How many students are at WCA South Elementary, K-5? A: Hoffman
has 72 students within 1 mile, 140 students within 7 miles, and 178 students
within 10 miles. Kensington has 19 students within 1 mile, 129 students within
7 miles, and 145 students within 10 miles.
Q: Would the new elementary house all pre-k through 5th
grade and if so, why is the square footage required smaller than the total of
Elbow Lake? A: WCA South Elementary
would house pre-k through 5th grade students. South Elementary
requires less square footage than North Elementary due to the number of
students that attend each respective school.
There are space efficiencies obtained with new construction that are not
attainable with renovation.
Q: If 5th grade moves to elementary, what happens with
empty classrooms at the secondary school? A: Currently,
all classroom space at the secondary school is occupied. With moving 5th
grade back to the elementary level, we are able to accommodate larger class
sizes in the future by allowing some classrooms to become flex classrooms at
the secondary school. One of our
Vocational Agriculture classrooms is a small converted meeting/storage
room. Our Special Education space in
undersized and will utilize a classroom to alleviate crowed conditions.
Q: Has the district received approval from MDE to proceed as of
yet? A: Yes, WCA has received a positive Review and Comment from the
Minnesota Department of Education.
Q: What is the cost to delay the project? A: The cost
to delay will likely result in a 3-5% inflation cost increase for each year the
project is delayed.
Q: What is the cost for fixtures, furniture and equipment for a
project like this? A: Equipment and technology are budgeted at approximately 4-5% of
total project costs. 3% is budgeted for fixtures, furnishings and equipment and
1-2% for technology.
Q: Will the old portion of Elbow Lake North match or pair well
with the new portion or will it be just “good enough”? A: The
extensive renovation will ensure that new and renovated parts of the building
look alike. The new additions will blend
well with the existing structure.
Q: Do the
schools have to be ADA compliant by 2032? A: Minnesota Accessibility Code Section
1341.0305.7 requires 20% of a primary function area (such as classrooms,
gymnasiums, etc.) renovation project budget to be spent on ADA improvements.
This includes a project with a building addition. All renovation and new construction must be
fully ADA compliant.
Q: Is there
an ability to add on to the south building if needed? A: With the new site in Hoffman, yes. Both
North and South floor plans accommodation additions should there need to be in
the future.
Q: Can you
explain the need for more bathrooms in both elementary schools? A: With the
proposed plan, bathrooms would exist in classrooms for our 3- and 4-year-old
programs, and also in our special education areas so students with higher needs
have a bathroom available and easily accessible to them. The number of spaces are determined by State
code and are based on occupancy levels.
Q: What is
STEAM? A: STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and
math. Designated STEAM spaces allow opportunity for collaboration - whether
it’s in one grade level or among multiple grade levels, for collaborative,
large scale projects. Some of this is happening within existing classrooms now,
but some classrooms are very tight on space and collaborative work becomes
difficult in addition to finding space to store projects in progress by
students.
Q: Can you further explain the Vo Tech expansion at the secondary
school? A: The VoTech expansion would be built onto the current Vo/Ag and
IT area – it’s currently 3600 sq ft, and will be added to the outside wall of
the current space. The additional space will allow for expansion of our metal
fabrication and mechanics programs to allow for multiple large-scale projects
to occur at one time - for example a tractor restoration project that is
occurring simultaneously with a large welding project like a trailer.
Q: Is the
ball field complex land on a signed purchase agreement? A: Yes. The purchase agreement is contingent on a
successful bond/vote.
Q: Was there
consideration of Kensington’s offer to pay for water and sewer to a new site
located in Kensington? A: Yes
Q: Please
confirm dates that these original school buildings were built. A: South
construction dates were in 1955, 1957, and 1970. North:
The sections proposed for demolition were constructed in 1936 and the
early 1950’s. The gym section and
surrounding areas planned for renovation were constructed in 1966.
Q: The City of Kensington contracted with others
to complete an inspection of South Elementary.
Has the Board seen the report?
A: Yes. A Building Assessment Report completed by
Engan and Associates was made available to the WCA Board members and superintendent. The assessment identified many of the same
conditions that the Board was aware of through prior assessments. The report was also reviewed by the
District’s architects and construction manager.
Upon a quick review, they cited many missing components. Most notably, there was no mention of
replacing plumbing that is likely original, grading for drainage, sidewalk
replacement, no space allocation for HVAC ductwork and air handling equipment
and there were items mentioned in the report that were not included in the cost
summary.
Q: How do renovation cost projections compare to
new construction cost projections? A: Remember, renovation alone does
not address current and future academic and program needs. The construction cost of a 22,318 sf addition
is projected to cost $5,914,270. When
new construction costs for an addition are added to renovation cost
projections; it was found that Unesco’s 2018 projection is 87% of the cost of
new construction, ZBA estimates will be 72% of new construction and Engan’s
projection is 67% of new construction. A
spreadsheet for the comparison is provided on the District website.
Q: How were academic and program space needs
determined when planning for elementary school improvements? ZBA architects met with elementary
administrators, selected elementary staff, and Board representatives.
Q: The school district was offered land to build
a new South Elementary in both Kensington and Hoffman. Why did the District reject those offers? A:
Board members reviewed District student population data and student
residence location. They considered
geographical proximity of the cities within the District. They also reviewed community data including
percentage of increase in property valuations, population, and commercial
parcels. It was determined that a
Hoffman location would be preferred. As
Board members discussed various sites in both communities; they considered
topography, proximity to residences that are within reasonable walking
distance, existing street access, access to utilities, site size, and value in
comparison to other sites. The Board
determined the chosen Hoffman site location offered multiple logistical and financial
advantages and negotiations were initiated for the development of a purchase
agreement with the property.