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Invest in Austintown
Invest in Austintown
EDITOR:
I am an Austintown parent, an Austintown business owner, and an Austintown resident. In addition, I was born, raised and educated in Austintown schools. They built my foundation to move on to higher education and reach my goals. We have a chance to give-back to our children what our parents gave to us — a good education in modern learning environments. Every student in the Austintown Schools deserves the best education we can provide.
On the Nov. 3 ballot, Austintown Schools has a very important 2.9-mill bond Issue for our consideration.
It will finance new schools to replace old, deteriorating schools built in the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s and provide the latest technology and teaching environments.
The state of Ohio will pay 47 percent (or $23 million) of the total cost of the project if we act now. The money won’t likely be available later.
Construction jobs over a 3 to 5 years will boost Austintown’s economy and businesses.
Taxpayers will save $500,000 in operating costs due to the centralized Falcon Campus.
Can Austintown Taxpayers afford to pass this opportunity up? No.
On the ballot, the Bond Issue specifically states 2.4 mills for the bond issue and a half mill for improvements required for these new buildings only in the future. The Ohio School Facilities Commission mandates schools who receive state money to include this initiative. The money generated by this bond issue can only be used for the construction of the new schools. This is not an operating levy for teachers’ salaries, etc.
The Austintown School Bond Issue proposes the construction of two new schools and the demolition of five elementary buildings and one intermediate building and returning the “old” sites to green. Our students of Austintown deserve the latest technology and learning environment to receive a well-deserved education. The cost of this 2.9 mill bond issue will cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $7.40 per month (about $0.25 per day). In return, the community will attract more families to Austintown, raising our home values. As new families decide where to live and raise their children, good, modern schools are key elements.
Voters of Austintown, please consider the benefits of this bond issue and vote yes for our children, for our schools, for our community and for our future.
LORI A. GAVALIER
Austintown
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Comments
Maybe it would attract more families to Austintown if you actually had to live here to go to school here. With open enrollment, you don't have to buy a home here.
The architectural firm employed for this is in Youngstown. You don't know that the construction firm will be from around here, it will be bid out and could be completed by anyone. It may boost the lunch and gas station economy, but that will be about it (that is if they don't bring their lunches which some crews do).
Canfield has a middle school that is just as old as some of our buildings. Why is that they can maintain that school and up to date technology yet we can not.
Last, new schools won't change the test scores. You want to know what draws people in - EXCELLENT rating on the report card. Until the administration puts true effort into raising those scores, we will not achieve that distinction.
The most important issue is why give them more money for new schools so they can let those deteriorate away like they have let all of our other buildings? And why give money to a plan where the main focus is 3 new soccer fields and one new softball field. I know, the drawing is just a rendering of what could be, but obviously someone said they wanted that to be a huge feature, not the tiny playgrounds for elementary kids or parking adequate enough to hold parents for 1400 kids!
http://www.rateitall.com/i-2682842-austi...
The letter writer mentioned "green" jobs. They're a illusion. "Green" jobs costs are prohibitive. Green is the new Red.
We are already vastly over-taxed. Why should a homeowner, $100,000 equity have to pay an additional $7.40/month is addition to his already overtaxed real estate?
The state will provide 47% or 23M for the construction. Just who IS the state? The state is the taxpayers.
The solution is homeschooling or private education. Too expensive? They wouldn't be if we weren't so over burdened with confiscatory taxes, about 50% or our total income.