Video Courtesy USD 489 News
By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
“We are listening.” That was the message from the Hays USD 489 administration and Board of Education during Monday’s work session, as they contemplated separating out the Hays Middle and High School gyms from the $94 million bond issue, along with a variety of other issues facing the district.
“We’ve heard the public loud and clear,” said Lance Bickle, board president, as additional gyms have been a frequent topic of concern heard by board members.
And according to Superintendent Dean Katt, separating out a piece of the issue is not uncommon and could help residents understand the need for the bond. Katt also noted that putting the gyms on a separate question did not mean they are not needed.
The tax impact for the two gyms is $2.52 a month for a $150,000 home with a stand-alone cost of $8.8 million.
The board also discussed the need to get the resolution for the election set at the next meeting.
The resolution was pushed back in an effort to collect enough signatures to allow for a sales tax question that would fund a portion of the bond to be put on the ballot.
An effort to collect the required 10 percent of registered voters in Hays would put a sales tax question on the ballot.
“We should know soon,” Katt said, if enough signatures were collected to put the put the sales tax question on the bond issue ballot. The county election office is currently canvassing the over 1,600 signatures collected for verification. Ten percent – or slightly over 1,200 signatures – will need to be certified to put the question on the ballot.
The board plans on presenting the signatures to the Hays City Commission later this month.
While the public relations portion of the bond issue is just beginning, collecting the sales tax signatures is a big win for the district.
“It’s been the opposite of the town-hall meetings,” Bickle said. Community members have been saying that with the sales tax question on the ballot, more people have been supportive of the bond.
The board will take up the question at their next meeting, as well as discussing the resolution that would allow a June 7 bond issue election.
In the meantime, the board is looking forward, discussing options for construction if the bond issue is successful.
There are three options available, according to Jon Pahl, executive vice president of operations for Nabholz Construction — design-bid-build, construction manager-agent and construction manager-at risk.
The significant difference between the three is the way the district would interact with the construction workforce.
The more traditional design-bid-build, Pahl said, is not very transparent and would operate as a “lump-sum contract,” meaning the contractor would be the only one to see subcontractor costs – and would benefit from any project savings.
If a construction manager is selected instead, that person would work with the district, more like an employee.
Either a manager-agent or manager-at risk option would allow the district to recoup any savings during construction and a manager-at risk would also allow the manager to oversee the hiring of subcontractors, meaning the manager would be responsible for cost overruns.
Paul also informed the Board the sooner a construction manager is hired, the more potential the manager has to reduce cost, due to decisions being made before designs are finalized.
Other action items:
The Board unanimously approved bills in the amount of $142,782.94.
The Board unanimously approved the Kansas Early Head Start Partnership grant application.
The Board unanimously approved a bid for the purchase of nutrition services point-of-sale software.
The Board unanimously approved Consent agenda items:
- Board Meeting Minutes February 15, 2016
- Financial Report: Petty Cash Report
- Early Childhood Connections Eligibility Recruitment Priority Grids
- Federal Early Head Start Grant
- Early Childhood Connections 1-25-2016 Minutes
- Early Childhood Connections 2-29-2016 Director’s Report
- Approval of Bills in the Amount of
- Personnel Transactions
- Surplus Items