This represents a summary of the Public Hearing of the Board of Education of Big Lake Public Schools #727. A complete set of minutes will be on file at the District Office and on our website at www.biglake.k12.mn.us upon Board approval.
I. CALL TO ORDER
The Special meeting of the Board of Education of Independent School District No. 727, Big Lake Public Schools, was held on Thursday, September 9, 2008, at 8:01 p.m., in the Big Lake High School Board Room.
II. ROLL CALL
The following Board members were present: Mr. Tim Hayes, Mr. Chris Chudy, Ms. Cindy Harjes, Mr. Tim Stockstead, Mr. Dan Nygaard and Mr. Kevin Phillippe. Also present: Superintendent Jonathan Miller, Angie Manuel, Brad Butalla, Anthony Loftus, Tim Houghton, Barb Smithling, Michelle Antonsen, Corinne Marsoleh, Jennifer Edwards, Julie Vickerman, Jim Koenen, Dean Downs, Mike Reasoner, Julia Stevens, Chris Staples, Becky Christiansen, Brenda Gust, Chadd Gundberg, Elissa Kapala, Jennifer Edwards
III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Chair Hayes and the Board led the Pledge of Allegiance.
IV. REQUEST OF TAX ABATEMENT
Ice Association representatives, Chris Staples, Jim Koenen and Brad Butalla, were present to answer questions from the Board regarding the tax abatement for an ice arena. After some discussions around the abatement, a motion passed to approve the Great Rivers Energy (GRE) property to go towards a hockey arena with the following stipulations:
1. This approval is dependent on the formal approval of tax abatement for this project from the City of Big Lake, the Town of Big Lake and Sherburne County. If one entity denies approval, then this motion is null and void.
2. The amount to be abated by the School District each year of the abatement term shall not exceed $25,226 per year.
3. The School District will have no other financial liability to or ownership in the arena. The school district will also not be a party to a joint powers agreement regarding the arena in any way.
4. The School District is not responsible for any future operating costs other than those that are charged to the District, as would be any other organization, in its use of the facility (i.e. ice time).
5. The School District will not draw up any legal documents regarding abatement until such a time as all other entities have agreed to the abatement. The District will not incur any other expenses regarding the abatement process until all approvals are gained.
6. Continues only if arena remains solvent.
V. LEVY REFERENDUM FEASIBILITY SUBCOMMITEE
Kevin Phillippe, Dan Nygaard and Cindy Harjes gave the following report to the Board from their August 21, 2008, Levy Referendum Feasibility Subcommittee meeting:
The Levy Referendum Feasibility Subcommittee recommends that we do not seek voter approval for an increase in our operating levy this fall. We respect the opinion of the community and the results of our last referendum and will work within our financial constraints to do what is best for our students.
Although the need to increase our operating levy remains, we have heard what the community has told us through their votes and through our dialogue with community members since our failed referendum last fall. The clear message we have received is we need to become more efficient and to find a way to provide a quality education within current state and federal funding levels.
To meet this requirement, we undertook a comprehensive review of all District expenditures in collaboration with community members, staff and administration. The resulting budget was a reduction of over $2 million in operating expenses that included cuts in all areas of District operations. (This is on top of the significant operating cuts made the past 2 years.) The intent of the cuts was to minimize the impact to our students but there was still an impact since class sizes did increase, fees for activities did rise and other services were reduced.
As we look forward to the 2009-2010 school year, it is clear that costs to operate the district continue to rise faster than revenues, creating another budget shortfall. Most of these cost increases are unavoidable, such as the cost for electricity and natural gas, the cost of healthcare, the costs of un-funded mandates, etc. Although the revenue from the state and federal government has increased slightly, it has not kept pace with escalating operating costs.
As we implement the cuts this year, we will assess the impact of these cuts and continue to look for additional ways to improve efficiency. We will continue to receive feedback from all involved (students, parents, teachers, other staff and administration) to let us know how the cuts are impacting our students and community.
The decision not to seek a referendum means that we will likely be making more cuts next year. Our current model shows that the cuts will be less than those made this year, but until we get through the audit for 2007/8 and get a handle on our attendance numbers for the current year we will not have a good estimate of what the cuts will be. The Legislature will also be reviewing state funding levels but it is unlikely that any revenue increase will keep pace with operating costs.
By not going forward with a referendum this fall, and assuming that the state does not change how school districts are funded, we will need to return for a referendum in November 2009 to at least renew the current $7/student operating levy. This raises approximately $25K from local residents and qualifies us for approximately $300K in state matching funding which we would lose if our current levy expires. We may have other questions on the ballot depending on our financial situation and state funding decisions in the next legislative session. The decision on whether to seek additional funding will be made in collaboration with the community during this school year.
Although our financial constraints continue to grow, we realize that our schools belong to the community and that we all need to work together to ensure our District meets the needs of our children.
A motion passed to support the recommendation from the Levy Referendum Feasibility Subcommittee, by not going forward with a referendum this November 2008.
