Schools

Brighton Schools Seek $88 Million Bond Issue

Board members voted to approve the bond amount during a special meeting on Saturday.

The Brighton Area Schools Board of Education voted 5-2 to submit an application to obtain a bond for the amount of $88.45 million during its special meeting on Saturday.

The bond will fund building repairs and improvements such as leaking roofs, bad piping and improved athletic facilities. The technology portion of the bond will cost $15 million. If everything goes accordingly, the bond issue will be put before voters in May.

Superintendent Greg Gray said it was important to have the bond issue on the May election ballot in order to receive more money. Gray said if the district waits, it could lose $21 million due to the way the state calculates property values.

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Trustees John Conely and Miles Vieau cast the dissenting votes.

Newest board member Bill Trombley said that while he supported the bond, he did not believe the district needed $88.45 million worth of work.

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Trombley said that based on his job experience as the director of Southeast Michigan Operations at Granger Construction Company, he believes that the building repairs could be done for maybe $40 million. Then adding the cost for technology, the school district could ask for $55 million.

"Maybe that amount will be more palatable than the $88 million to the taxpayers," he said.

Even though Trombley disagreed with the bond amount, he voted yes at the meeting.

"I feel kind of sorry for them (Conely and Vieau) because they both said no," Trombley said. "They weren't saying no to the bond or passing the bond issue. They were saying no to the $88 million. I think they had the same thoughts that I did. I voted yes because I didn't want to be accused of not supporting the bond issue, like they are being accused -- which isn't right."

Jeff Miner, a teacher, used two football helmets -- one brand new and one from 1945 -- as props for when he addressed board members at the meeting.

"I'm not smart enough and I don't have enough time to talk about every single thing in our district that needs to be replaced," Miner said. "But that can be a metaphor for whatever you want: computers, roofs or whatever you want it to be. This football helmet would be perfectly servicible in 1945. We can duck tape it and add new pads to it, but it still wouldn't make the grade in today's game. Instead, things have changed a little bit and we have this nice, shiny new helmet. In a lot of ways, this is what the bond will do for our district."

Stephanie Konkel, Brighton resident and owner of Kensington Valley Varisty, also spoke in favor of the bond. Konkel said how she has watched her business grow rapidly in the past five years because of the reinvestment of the city and the Downtown Development Authority.

"It's very frustrating as a business owner, seeing all the things we've done in the city to make it better and watch our schools just decline because they can't keep up with everybody else," she said. "And I think if we don't do this now, we're going to keep falling further and further behind."

Konkel also said she deals with parents from all districts in Livingston County and the attitude toward Brighton schools is negative from both district parents and those from other districts.

While the majority of the people who spoke at the meeting were in favor of the bond, Brighton Township Treasurer Lana Theis had a different perspective.

"I'm the tax collector, so I get to see the faces of the folks who are in tears as they can't afford to pay the taxes that they already have and might lose their home," Theis said. "I'm not saying this is something that we shouldn't do, but we definitely need to make the case and we definitely need to consider it. Businesses will have a infinitely higher cost to them because of the higher assessments that they have associated."

The district will submit its application to the State Treasury Department on Wednesday. Following the submission, it will meet with Treasury representatives on Jan. 17 to run through application and receive a yes or no answer. If the district qualifies, the bond issue will go back to board members who will begin working towards ballot language.

The ballot language must be approved at least 70 days before the May election day.


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