Residents in the Hattiesburg Public School District will decide May 22 during a special election if they want to renew the 4-mill tax that will provide as much as $22.5 million to renovate and maintain the schools.
The School Board set the election date during a special called meeting Tuesday at the HPSD boardroom. Two resolutions were passed by the board: setting the specific purposes for the bond funds and also the date for the referendum. The vote to continue the millage requires 60 percent approval.
School Board President Delores McNair said the bond renewal involves more than just the schools.
“Strong schools equal strong communities,” she said during a news conference after the meeting. “The pinnacle of every decision that we make as a board is the education and safety of our students.”
HPSD Superintendent Robert Williams said the referendum gives voters the chance to keep their support for the schools.
“(They) will have the opportunity to continue their investment in our students and in our community through the passage of a no-tax-increase bond resolution,” he said. “The approved resolution will consist of several projects that were derived from feedback from the community as well as an audit of our facilities.”
Williams said the additions include a new façade for Hattiesburg High School, construction of a new media center, a new commons area and courtyard classrooms, restrooms as well as redesign of the multipurpose center. New classrooms will be built at N.R. Burger Middle School and structural repairs and much-needed renovations will be made throughout the school district.
Hattiesburg Mayor Toby Barker praised the School Board for stepping “forward to try to meet the needs of our students and our schools while also keeping an eye out for Hattiesburg taxpayers.”
Barker emphasized that the referendum will not raise taxes, instead asking residents within the school district to continue the current millage rate.
“We see this as an opportunity for our citizens to recognize Hattiesburg only go as far as the public schools will allow to re-engage with its public schools and to renew its commitment to its next generation by making this vote an easy vote,” he said. “Our school district, already on the path to improvement in fiscal responsibility, will have the resources to make overdue renovations, additions and repairs to our schools to ensure that our students have a 21st-century learning environment. This should be a slam dunk.”
Barker said the city will open one polling place for each of the school district’s five wards. The polling places are:
• Ward 1 - Highlands Precinct, Cornerstone Baptist Church on West Seventh Street.
• Ward 2 - Train Depot.
• Ward 3 - Thames Elementary School.
• Ward 4 - Kamper Park Zoo.
• Ward 5 - Rowan Elementary School.
“This will keep costs down and avoid confusion as far as precinct lines,” Barker said. “If anyone has any questions on where they vote in this bond renewal referendum, they can reach out to our office at 601-545-4501.”
At Tuesday’s Hattiesburg City Council meeting, the election commissioners were appointed. Those named were Akbar Shaheed (Ward 1), Irene Williams-Jones (Ward 2), Steve Willis (Ward 3), Tim Phalen (Ward 4) and Kimberly-Joy Miri (Ward 5). Their terms are from March 20, 2018, until June 30, 2021.
