Ankeny's 10th Elementary School Could Require $18.5 Million Referendum

The final amount of a bond referendum to construct the Ankeny school district’s tenth elementary school might be higher than originally anticipated.

At Monday night’s Ankeny school board meeting, board members heard a recommendation that, if approved, would ask voters to support an $18.5 million referendum on Sept. 11 to finance construction of the district’s next elementary school.

At the board’s April 3 meeting, board President George Tracy said the possible referendum would not exceed $17 million. However, Superintendent Matthew Wendt told board members that figure was not set in stone.

Wendt also provided the board with five alternative plans should a referendum fail.

“My recommendation is to take the next three weeks, read these carefully and make sure you weigh the pros and cons of each,” Wendt told board members at the meeting.

Board member Dustin Graber, who also chairs the school district facilities committee, presented eight recommendations from the committee about the possible referendum.

Discussion originally started at the board’s March 26 meeting.

The recommendations are as follows and need to be approved by the board before anything is final.

• Approve the tenth elementary to be paid for through a bond referendum.
• Have the referendum go before a public vote on Tuesday, Sept. 11.
• Approve the design of elementary 10 to be the same as Prairie Trail Elementary School.
• Approve Struxture Architects to serve as architects for construction.
• Approve Story Construction to serve as the construction management firm for the project.
• Direct the superintendent to negotiate the sale of district land and use the proceeds from the sale toward purchasing a suitable land site for elementary 10.
• Direct the superintendent to negotiate the purchase of a suitable land site for elementary 10.
• Approve $18.5 million in bond referendum proceeds to be used for constructing the building.

Curious about the cost breakdown comprising the $18.5 million? Here is a breakdown:

• Facility: $14,180,992
• Building furnishings and equipment (furniture, desks, playground equipment, etc.): $1,353,965
• District furnishings and equipment (trash cans, nursing supplies, etc.): $325,000
• Indirect costs (architect fees, permits, surveys, etc.): $1.69 million
• Net land costs: $1 million

Despite the hike in the referendum’s possible amount, it will not affect .

Wendt also provided the board with five alternate plans, which included the cost, pros and cons of each.

Other options included:

• Keeping existing boundary lines and transporting students to schools outside their feeder system, which would cost the district more in transportation costs, Wendt said.
• Moving fifth-graders to a new space – possibly in secondary classrooms – to make more room at the elementary level.
• Utilizing modular classrooms once Ankeny Centennial High School opens and secondary students no longer require them.
• Finally, board members could implement a combination of all these practices, Wendt said.

The school board will meet again at a special meeting on April 30 at 5 p.m.