BOONE, Iowa—The Boone City Council received an update from the Boone School District on the status of the District’s plans to replace the Page and Lincoln Elementary buildings with a new building. It was actually more of an update on timing that anything which is something the Council had concerns about, especially if it involves planning and expense for roads, water and sewer infrastructure. Originally, it was expected that the School District would have put a Bond Issue question to voters last September. That did not happen, primarily due to the pandemic. Since then, a committee of school district patrons has organized and will be seeking to petition to School Board to bring the bond issue to voters in March 2021. If voters were to approve, it’s estimated that a new building would not be completed until late in 2023. During the meeting it was confirmed that the School District has not officially purchased the proposed site for the school, the property east of Hancock Drive and South Jackson Street.

The timing update did answer some of the concerns expressed by the Council when they first heard of the possible bond vote next March. There was concern that the city would not have adequate time to plan and prepare for the additional infrastructure expense.  Over the past couple of years, the council has avoided selling bonds for projects, opting to pay for projects out of existing revenue streams or by saving over multiple years.