Liberty-Benton School Board Moving Forward With Building Levy
1/11/19 – 5:11 A.M.
The Liberty-Benton school board is taking steps to put a building levy in front of voters in May. The board passed a resolution to move forward with a 7.3-mill bond issue. The 35-year property tax includes 6.8 mills for construction and another half-mill for continued maintenance of a new pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade building. The plan also includes renovations in the high school.
The tax would pay for the local share of a $45.5 million project. The state would pay or 57 percent of the construction.
If voters pass the levy, the district would start collecting the tax in January of 2020. At the same time, the bond for the high school will expire. The current levy is collected at 1.8 mills, so the actual increase in property tax bills would be 5.5 mills. That amounts to just over $192 per year for a property appraised at $100,000.
The plan includes funding for an 800-seat auditorium. Community surveys showed a new pre-k through eighth-grade building plus a new auditorium was the most popular option.