Approximately eight months after residents in the Petal School District overwhelmingly voted to approve a slight tax increase to support the construction of a new elementary school – along with a new multi-purpose center – to accommodate the 7 percent increase in student population across the district’s five schools in the span of the past five years, district officials are looking forward to receiving the first payments to get that measure started.
During this month’s meeting of the Petal School District Board of Trustees, board members approved a resolution authorizing the issuance of a general obligation bond in the principal amount of no more than $36,600 to begin payment on the project. Jim Young, who serves as bond attorney for the school district, was on hand at the meeting to lay out the particulars of the bond and its payments.
“We have a series of deadlines to meet when it comes to securing the money from the bond initiative; we’ve not received the money yet, because it’s a long process,” district superintendent Matt Dillon said. “So we’re having to meet with the Mississippi Development Bank, making sure all of our ducks are in a row so that when we go to get our bonds and physically get the money – which will be within the next month or two – that we have everything in order as we get closer and closer to moving forward with our projects.
“So really, it’s a timing factor – a lot of timing has to go into it, and a lot of coordination. We’ve been working behind the scenes with (members of our staff) and other entities to get everything in order to make sure we stay on our time frame.”
During a special bond referendum on May 16 held at Petal High School, approximately 80 percent of voters said “yes” to a 4.5 mill tax increase on property taxes to support that endeavor. According to final but unofficial results from the election, a total of 1,142 residents participated in the election, of which 1,1148 voted for the initiative and 294 voted against it.
There were 58 affidavit ballots and seven absentee votes in the election, which required a 60 percent voter approval to pass.
Dillon said this latest measure will put district officials on the right track for receiving bids for the project. The timeline for the project is expected to be somewhat more clarified by late March.
“That’ll hit at about the same time when we start receiving our monies from the bond initiative,” Dillon said. “That puts all the moving parts together, and then we can move forward with our projects, (assuming) that all the bids come back favorable for our district.
“I’m very excited (to be at this stage in the process) – first was the excitement of passing the bond initiative,” Dillon said. “Then leading up to that it was all the legwork with getting the information out and being transparent.
“Fast forward to where we’re at now and all the things that have happened behind the scenes that are so time consuming, involving so many different people … it’s exciting that we’re getting close to accepting bids and moving forward with projects into the summer months. That keeps up with the timeline that we’ve talked about.”
One mill is equal to one-tenth of a cent. To calculate property tax, divide the millage by 1,000 and multiply it by the property’s assessed taxable value.
For example, if a city were to institute a .64 millage increase, the owner of a $100,000 home will pay an additional $6.40 per year in property taxes. Property owners who are under 65 years of age with a home valued at $100,000 will pay an additional $45 per year on property taxes. An individual over 65 years of age with the same home value will pay an extra $11.25 annually.
The new elementary school will be built on school-owned property on Herrington Road, adjacent to Petal Primary School. The school will house third and fourth grades and would be constructed to accommodate future growth.
The current elementary school will become part of the Petal High School campus, providing space for the high school, which is home to the largest number of students in the district.
“In 2014, we were sitting right at 4,000 students, but fast forward to this school year, we grew all the way to 4,400 students at one point,” Dillon said at a recent public hearing on the matter. “We have since dipped, as every day, people move in and move out during the school year. But in the last six years, we have grown 330 students.”
In anticipation of that construction, district officials have recently overseen the widening of Herrington Road to facilitate traffic flow from Petal High School, Petal Primary School, Petal Elementary School and the proposed new school.
The multi-purpose facility will be constructed on the Petal High School campus and will feature a full-size gymnasium, complete with stadium seating and a stage for arts and athletics. The building also will offer opportunities for the district to host various camps and competitions, such as dance and cheer competitions, as well as JROT exhibitions and indoor percussion events.
“Our immediate next steps will be to finish out the school year, for us to start looking at our bidding process, looking at all the projects and coming up with a timeline,” Dillon said. “We’ll be sharing more information about that, but right now we’re just going to focus on finishing out the school year strong.”
Dillon said without funds from the bond, district officials would have been forced to increase class sizes and purchase additional portable buildings for instructional spaces at the high school and elementary school.
“First of all, with the voter turnout – having over 1,500 people come out to vote – was just really good for us,” he said. “I think that really shows the importance of the school district.
“And then, number two, getting 80 percent is a really strong percentage rate, especially when you’re talking about some form of tax investment. So I’m very pleased and very proud.”
