Two Angelina County school districts are asking for community support of proposed bonds on election Tuesday.
Diboll ISD is asking for approval of a $22.5 million bond, while Zavalla ISD is asking for approval of a $5.5 million bond in addition to a tax ratification.
Jessica Cooley/The Lufkin Daily News |
Zavalla ISD students line up for lunch at 10:15 a.m. -- a school-day ritual that comes ''too early'' because of the district's small, aging cafeteria, Superintendent David Flowers said. The approval of Proposition 2 will allow the district to construct a new, larger cafeteria with students being given later lunch times.
|
Joel Andrews/The Lufkin Daily News |
Currently Diboll ISD has four campuses. Temple Elementary, located at 400 Ash St., currently serves second through fifth grades. Diboll's $22.5 million bond includes a proposed K-6th grade campus built east of the high school on Lumberjack Drive.
|
Diboll's $22.5 million bond includes a proposed K-6th grade campus built east of the location of the high school on Lumberjack Drive, according to Superintendent Gary Martel. The school is looking at using approximately 50 acres of land east of Deer Trace subdivision and Lumberjack Stadium for the new campus, if the bond passes.
"We can't just keep adding to the campuses we have, eventually we will run out of room," Martel said. "There would be two campuses but they would share core facilities such as a cafeteria/auditorium. It would also solve our vertical alignment issues with our curriculum."
The bond would also fund:
* Improving traffic safety flow and parking, particularly at the junior high.
* Upgrading and repairing high school science labs and career and technology areas.
* Adding appropriate district technology infrastructure and equipment.
* Updating safety and security at all campus buildings.
* Second-tier priorities, including upgrading the high school vocational, band and fine arts areas.
Zavalla's $5.5 million bond would fund a safer elementary school — the No. 1 priority of the project, Zavalla Superintendent David Flowers said.
"Our elementary has five buildings and they're all separate entrances. This bond election will allow us to get all of those buildings under one roof creating a safer and more secure school," he said. "Student safety and school security are paramount at this time. I believe that is key. Five new classrooms, a state-of-the-art library and the added bonus of adjoining the existing buildings."
Other bond priorities include:
* A track for the district's track team which currently practices in the parking lot or in a field behind the school.
* An on-campus baseball field, concession and storage facility.
* A new cafeteria providing healthier lunch times.
The ZISD tax ratification election proposes changing the overall tax rate to $1.23, increasing maintenance and operations from $1.04 to $1.17. The 13-cent increase will raise $300,000 for ZISD — money that Flowers said is needed to maintain the district's financial stability.
"The state is not very kind to Zavalla ISD. We're the sixth-lowest target revenue district in the state of Texas. We have to have an election to raise those funds," he said. "Those 13 pennies will allow us to maintain financial stability, fund competitive teacher salaries, pay increased fuel and utility costs, the cost of supplies and give us additional money to fund smaller projects."
"A yes, yes is a win-win for Zavalla ISD," Flowers added.
Diboll's Election Day voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Diboll City Hall at 400 Kenley St. and at Diboll Fair Acres Community Center at 735 Booker St.
Zavalla's Election Day voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Zavalla Sub-Courthouse at 134 Warren St.
