District 113 Board Selects Referendum Financing Option
The District 113 Board of Education finalized the debt structure of its $89 million referendum bond at Monday night’s Board meeting.
Referendum
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Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Highland Park Architect Supports District 113 Referendum
Richard Becker, who wrote an editorial on Patch two years ago opposing District 113's bond referendum, explains why he supports the district's latest plan to renovate Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools.
Its been two years since I posted my thoughts here on the 2011 District 113 referendum. I opposed the $133 million referendum, yet I support this year's $89 million version -- a better planned, more modestly priced and most importantly, broader-based community effort than the referendum that failed two years ago. This pleases some, angers others. But I have my reasons, which I elaborate on below. Read more about the District 113 referendum here. The 2011 referendum was based on a plan that had been designed by Wight Architects and approved by the 113 School Board. I had no involvement in the community process leading up to the referendum. After the plan was unveiled, I objected, along with others, since I believed it flawed due to both …
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Monday, March 11, 2013
Does District 113 Need More Tax Money To Fix Its Schools?
Since District 113 announced it would be asking residents for $89 million to help pay for renovations to Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools, some have wondered: could the district improve the schools using existing funds alone?
Editor's note: This is the second of a series of articles exploring the District 113 referendum. Read the first story here. Since District 113 announced it would be asking residents for $89 million to help pay for renovations to Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools, some have wondered: could the district improve the schools using existing funds alone? Get caught up on the District 113 referendum here. Education First, the community group that opposes the referendum, believes it can. The group has proposed its own plan to address the schools' needs that it estimates would cost $60 million, all of which, its members argue, could come from the district's fund balance. The district currently has about $47 million, or about half of its …
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Marc Rossi
2:11 pm on Sunday, March 24, 2013
I dont have to be the CFO of Ebay to understand the simplicity of asking a few simple questions and responding Honestly to ourselves when we look in the mirror.. Do we need improvements and enhancement to our schools lets agree.. Yes Now answer for yourself.. !) is my families residence worth more than is was 10 yrs ago... Y/ N 2) are my real estate taxes double what they were 10 yrs ago... Y / N… more ›
Monday, March 4, 2013
Letters to the Editor
Referendum Addresses Schools' Critical Needs
A member of the study group that helped the Highland Park and Deerfield high school district assemble its renovation plan advocates for District 113's $89 million referendum.
Over the past 20 months, I, along with more than 100 industry experts and community residents, have studied the physical and educational conditions of both Deerfield and Highland Park High Schools and found the following: Experts have crafted a master plan and recommended the critical elements to be addressed with referendum and operating dollars. By supporting the referendum we are not passing the problem on to our children or future Deerfield and Highland Park residents. What do you think of the District 113 referendum? Post your opinion to our local voices. You must decide if you trust the industry experts and many residents who worked thousands of hours, to help craft the rehab plan we need for our children and our community. Simply …
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Letters to the Editor
Retired District 113 Teacher Opposes Referendum
A Highland Park resident explains how, if the high school district's $89 million referendum passes, he will no longer be able to afford to live in his home.
We are writing with concern about District 113’s proposed referendum for enlargement of Highland Park and Deerfield High School’s athletic and classroom facilities. In the face of dropping school enrollments, District 112’s need for capital improvements, the persistently sluggish economic recovery and deflated home values, we feel the referendum would place an unwarranted tax burden on the citizens of Highland Park and Deerfield. While the current referendum asks “only” $89 million, the actual cost of the Phase One project that tax payers will be funding is $120.4 million; not too far south of the $133 million District 113 asked for two years ago. District 113 says it will use an additional $25 million from existing budgets, which are …
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Sunday, February 24, 2013
Get Caught Up on the District 113 Referendum
Learn about the $89 million referendum Highland Park's high school district will ask residents to vote on in April, then find out what Patch bloggers and commenters are saying about it.
The District 113 School Board voted unanimously last month to put an $89 million referendum on the April ballot to pay for five years' worth of projects for Highland Park and Deerfield high schools. If you have your own thoughts to share, do so in the comments section. Or, better yet, sign up to be a Local Voices blogger to get your message out to our readers. The plan is projected to cost $114 million. Of that total, $25 million will come from the district's reserve funds and the remaining $89 million will come from District 113 residents. If the referendum passes, District 113 residents who own homes valued at $300,000 will pay $173 in taxes to the district in levy year 2013, a $47 increase from levy year 2012. If the referendum fails, …
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Debate Continues on D113's $89M Referendum
Patch readers have not been shy about voicing their opinions on the April vote to fund improvements to Deerfield and Highland Park high schools. What do you think?
The District 113 School Board voted unanimously last month to put an $89 million referendum on the April ballot to pay for five years' worth of projects for Highland Park and Deerfield high schools. Though the vote is months away, already Patch readers and bloggers are discussing their opinions at length. We've compiled a sampling of the comments from both sides of the debate. There are many more voices in the conversation, so click through on the individual stories to get the full scope of the debate. If you have your own thoughts to share, do so in the comments section. Or, better yet, sign up to be a Local Voices blogger to get your message out to our readers. Blogger Dan Jenks is supporting the referendum. "As a citizen in District 113…
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mark robbins
12:37 pm on Thursday, February 21, 2013
Very Impressed! As we were watching a movie last night, the door bell rang and we received the sign which is now up in our front yard. Thanks to The Highland Park Patch and Paul. Sincerely Appreciate - The Robbins Family more ›
Highlands and Ravines
Is the District 113 Referendum Choice Clear?
Read why columnist Ed Brill believes the timing is critical for Highland Park and Deerfield to make a major investment in its high schools.
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. …
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Enrique H.
11:01 am on Saturday, March 2, 2013
Still a bloated, expensive plan that is primarily devoted to pools and gyms. It is almost comical how this is being sold as a carefully constructed, well-thought-out, intricate Master Plan when it's a repackaged version of a plan that already got voted down. It seems like so much thought was put into discussing the details of the plan that the big picture, which the general population is most … more ›
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
League of Women Voters Endorses District 113 Referendum
The Highland Park-Highwood and Deerfield Area Leagues of Women Voters have endorsed District 113's referendum. Read why they endorsed this one and not the district's last attempt two years ago.
The Highland Park-Highwood and Deerfield Area Leagues of Women Voters have endorsed District 113's referendum, which ask voters to spend $89 million to renovate Deerfield and Highland Park High Schools. In a blog post published on Patch last week, the League writes that the referendum meets League criteria, which includes "clear educational objectives reflecting the expectations and desires of the community and show the linkage between the objectives and the request for additional funding." Want Highland Park news in your inbox every morning? Subscribe to Patch's newsletter. The renovation plan includes getting rid of building C on Highland Park's campus and replacing it with new classrooms. The physical education facilities in building C …
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Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Readers Argue Both Sides of District 113 Referendum
Patch readers and bloggers are discussing their opinions at length about the April vote to determine whether or not taxpayers will spend $89 million on Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools.
The District 113 School Board voted unanimously last month to put an $89 million referendum on the April ballot to pay for five years' worth of projects for Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools. Though the vote is months away, already Patch readers and bloggers are discussing their opinions at length. In a blog post entitled "History Repeats Itself in District 113," Michelle Holleman puts the referendum in a historical context, comparing this vote to a similar one decided in Highland Park a century ago. "The investments made in 1914 were good ones, maintained for 100 years," she writes. "But the time has come to ask, can we do better for our kids? And the answer is a resounding yes." Not everyone is so sure, however. Some feel that the…
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Twenty Year Resident
3:33 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013
Administrative cost have risen above practicality. Infrastructure has deteriorated as a result of. Problem is greater than the referendum. Unfortunately, children tend to be leveraged from mismanaged adults. more ›
David Greenberg
12:12 am on Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Rod, Anyone who knows me knows that I don't want to spend money unnecessarily. However, the schools have needs - if we don't meet them, they are only going to get worse, and cost more in the future. I spent 18 months serving on a Study Group that dove into the issues being experienced by the schools. I saw the problems first hand. It's unfortunate that the schools need so much work, and we can … more ›