SPRINGFIELD — Springfield School District voters narrowly approved a two-question bond referendum Tuesday.

Unofficial vote tallies showed voters approved question one for $17.66 million in bonds to improve school sites and facilities including construction of a main secure entrance, tornado/storm shelter and other safety, security, accessibility and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) improvements; converting the elementary gym to a technical trades including a construction trades, metals, manufacturing and auto shop, plus building and equipping a new gym.

Voters approved question one, 468 to 455.

Voters approved question two by one vote, 458 to 457, to issue up to $2.1 million in bonds to build new locker rooms and renovate and repurpose existing locker rooms for cafeteria improvements and school programming needs.

The Springfield Public School Board will canvass bond referendum votes at 7:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 12.

“You never know with the uncertainty that exists today,” said Springfield Superintendent Keith Kottke. “This is a great opportunity for our kids and our community that we’re looking forward to.”

Kottke said bond referendum election judges verified the number of ballots used with the number of processed ballots after the polls closed.

“There is a great deal of work that goes on after the polls close, making sure all the ballot tallies and marks are correct,” said Kottke.

He said the bond referendum process began in 2016 with a facility audit.

“As a committee, we found there were major mechanical needs that needed to get addressed,” said Kottke. “Then we worked on seeing if any other needs were wanted by the community.”

Meetings, a community survey, and listening sessions began in 2017 and were used to tweak plans, Kottke said.

“We didn’t go out for a vote last May due to COVID. Last fall, we decided to bring it to a vote Feb. 9,” Kottke said. “When you go through the process, you have to let the people decide. It’s been a long process, but I think it’s been a well thought out process.”

Kottke said a large bond referendum booklet was created and sent to people in the school district that serves the communities of Springfield, Clements, and Cobden.

“We did three virtual and in-person meetings in our auditorium, restricting in-person meeting to 60 people,” Kottke added. “We’re excited for the benefits this will provide to our kids and the community. We’re reinvesting in our facility and looking forward.”

The bond referendum booklet read that the school board believed this is a good time to consider necessary school facility projects because:

• The district is debt-free.

• District local tax revenue is in the bottom 5% of Minnesota school districts.

• Interest rates are at historic lows.

• Projects qualify for the Ag2School Property Tax Relief Bill passed in May 2019 that reduces property taxes paid on agricultural land for school improvements by 60% in 2022, and 70% for taxes payable in 2023 and beyond.

• The State’s share of the tax burden of a 20-year bonded project benefiting the school community exceeds 50%.

• Addressing school facility needs the community wants done will only become more costly over time.

According to the school bond referendum booklet, as of March 2020, Minnesota building codes began requiring tornado shelters in schools for any new school construction.

For Brown County, tornado shelters must withstand a 250 miles per hour tornado and will include added project costs. Design and engineering firm ISG, Inc., determined no current building sections meet the code requirement and renovating a current area was cost prohibitive.

A 1.45 million pending Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant the school district applied for would reduce the project cost.

The tax impact on an average home valued at $85,000 should not exceed $10 a month or $120 a year. The tax impact on homestead farmland valued at $7,000 an acre should not exceed $3.30 an acre. Tax impact on non-homestead farmland valued at $7,000 an acre should not exceed $6.60 an acre.

For more information, visit springfieldpublicschools.com

Fritz Busch can be emailed at fbusch@nujournal.com.