By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

The Hays school board voted Monday to delay action on a third bond attempt until January.

The board has been discussing for months what a third bond attempt should look like after bonds failed in 2016 and November.

The board was supposed to decide Monday night about the composition of a committee, which would develop several bond plans to present to the board. The board was also set to define parameters for what those plans might look like.

However, the board was unable to come to a consensus. Ultimately, on a 4-3 vote, with board members Paul Adams, Mike Walker and Luke Oborny in opposition, the board voted to table any further decisions on a bond until January.

Board member Greg Schwartz proposed the move to delay. His first motion was to delay action for a year, saying he did not think the community supported a bond at this time.

Fox said she agreed with Schwartz and added if the board is not unified on a large decision such as a bond, the perception in the community would not be positive.

“I am a person who likes to keep moving forward and not necessarily stand still and keep checking the boxes. In this particular case and the feedback I have received and us not being in a strong consensus, I feel some waiting time … I am not sure a year is where I want to go, but I do feel we need to take our foot off the gas for a little a bit,” she said.

Board member Sophia Rose Young said she supported delaying action on a bond, but wanted to continue to discuss consolidation of schools, especially elementary schools. The board, in its debate leading up to the vote last night, had discussed moving to two or three elementary schools instead of four. However, all of those plans included a new elementary school or an expansion of one of the existing schools, which would have to be financed with a bond.

Adams spoke in opposition of the motion and presented an alternative motion to form a committee and set parameters that had been proposed by administration at a meeting in May. He said if the board charged a committee with creating bond plans it would likely be six months to a year before the school board made any decisions on a bond.

He said was concerned a delay would likely result in increased construction costs due to inflation. He said the new tariff’s levied on steel by the Trump administration also might drive up the cost of construction materials.

“Are we shrugging our ultimate responsibility?” Adams said. “Are we doing the right thing for the students? At the end of the day, the students are there and the board of education does its part. At the end of the day, it is what are we doing to improve the students. … I know we have fiscal responsibilities, but ultimately are we doing the right thing for the education of students?”

Walker said he agreed with Adams. He said the board has already been talking in circles for six months, and it is time to put a committee together and get things moving.

Oborny said the board did not need to rush into another bond, but said he supported the creation of a committee to continue to work on bond plans.

“At some point, safety becomes a factor,” he said. “I am not talking about secure entrances like everybody thinks. I am talking about the buildings falling in around them—46 years on an AC. At some point, that has to start affecting education value. Just the facilities are falling apart.”

In other business:

• The board discussed a pilot study on the use of Chromebooks at the Learning Center and elementary and middle school levels. The board is set to vote on the pilot program at its next meeting.

• The board approved property insurance and workers compensation insurance contracts