First rendering of proposed new middle school in Nibley and Hyde Park.
CACHE COUNTY – Thanks to a plurality of county voters, the Cache County School District will be issuing general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed $139 million to fund new construction.
In the municipal election held on Nov. 21, county voters approved that bond issue by a favorable vote of 8,174 ballots (57.8 percent), with 5,958 ballots (42.1 percent) against the proposition.
According to district officials, the bond issue is needed to fund a new middle school and elementary school in Hyde Park; build a new middle school in Nibley (next to Heritage Elementary); convert Spring Creek Middle School into an elementary school; and, implement safety and security enhancements for each school in the district.
The text of the ballot proposal composed by district officials promised that no tax increases would be necessary to service the bond debt.
“Taking into account the repayment of the outstanding bonds (issued in 2013),” the text read, “the (Cache County School) Board expects that the issuance of the proposed (2023) bonds, in the manner currently expected, will result in no net increase to current annual property tax levels for the repayment of the bonds.”
Despite the use of many qualifiers in that statement, county residents apparently bought into that plan.
The Cache school district has experienced significant growth, adding 4,197 students since the 2013 bond was passed.
Various schools are operating over capacity including 11 elementary schools and one middle school. The district also counts with 38 portable classrooms.
Although the state has approved funding for all-day kindergarten, several schools cannot offer this service due to operating over capacity.
According to information distributed by the school district in the run-up to the general election, the proposed $139 million bond would allow the district to move sixth grade to middle school and allow for all-day kindergarten in the elementary schools serving all 27 communities in the district.
The construction of the new schools is also expected to allow the district to remove 6th grade from elementary schools, putting that grade back into middle schools with 7th and 8th grades.