Is the District 113 Referendum Choice Clear?

I don't like the road travelled to get here, but on the April municipal ballot, I will be voting in favor of the District 113 referendum.

For more than two years now, residents in District 113 have discussed and considered a funding plan to improve Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools.

Emotions have run high. Facts have been debated. Tempers have flared.

I have had one of those short tempers at times in the process. I believe District 113 has done a woeful job of educating voters on exactly why the referendum is needed, why the number is so similar to what was on the ballot two years ago, why they have large fiscal reserves that aren't being used for this project and why some of the projected costs of the project are so outsized. 

Further, District 113 has failed to rally the community around the process. People who participated in some of the committees and working groups tell me their opinions were ignored, or that the membership of certain committees was weighted in favor of a particular outcome. The data collected in the famous community survey was never released, and the flawed analysis was left to fester. 

So why am I voting in favor? Because listening to the process, the data, and most importantly,the independent voices from the pro-referendum group CLEAR113, I believe the timing is critical for us to be making a major investment in these schools. 

There is absolutely room for debate as to whether that investment should be $40 million or $120 million, but the people we have elected to run the schools have decided it needs to be the bigger number. They have hired the consultants, leveraged the community input and run the numbers. 

Could we get away with spending less? For sure. The Education First referendum opponents have demonstrated that some of the District 113 numbers seem inconsistent or exaggerated. They continue to correctly pressure the District over needs versus wants. They challenge whether a referendum is needed at all, versus reserve spending and budget reprioritization.

I admire both sides of the debate. I think even if the referendum passes as is, the opposition has helped shape the result. But they have also raised a lot of debate points that are irrelevant - projects like the Rosewood Beach update, Highland Park water plant and Waukegan court house have nothing to do with whether the District 113 schools need an update. 

The reality of infrastructure in America today is such that most taxing bodies are looking at major budget demands to maintain or improve service. That means more funding, and they aren't getting it from the state or federal government anymore. Taxpayers are the only source. 

A tax decrease would be wonderful. However I know that is at best a short-term proposition; eventually, all of the area taxing bodies will need a large investment to keep delivering on the quality of life we expect on the North Shore. 

What ultimately swayed me to pay attention to the pro-referendum voices this time was the sheer number of supporters who have nothing personal to gain from the passage of the referendum -- people without children who will be attending District 113 schools in the future. The advocacy for a spending plan that improves the community, including from people who opposed the 2011 referendum, was simply too significant to ignore. 

No plan is going to be perfect, and the magnitude of this plan still leaves me uncomfortable. It seems like we should never have gotten to the point where these two schools need $120 million in improvements. However, it seems this is where we are, and as such, I am ready to support the school board. The future of our community depends on our schools maintaining their standards.

The plan before us may be imperfect, but it is the only available approach to investing in that future, before it is too late.

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