Clear Creek-Amana Schools Growth Requires More Space. By Chris Earl, Reporter

A story on CCA.  Link

October 16 Board Meeting

You can view the meeting here:  Regular Meeting 10-16-13

The Board accepted petitions, containing 437 signatures, requesting a Bond Vote be established.  The Board set the Bond Vote for February 4, 2014.

A series of informational meetings have been established for the month of November, all will begin at 7:00 pm.

November 7:  Amana Elementary
November 12:  Clear Creek Elementary
November 14:  CCA Middle School
November 25:  North Bend Elementary School

If any organization or community group would like a presentation they can request one by calling me at 319-828-4510, or emailing:  timkuehl@ccaschools.org.

Educationally yours,

Tim Kuehl

10-8-13 Informational Meeting

On Tuesday night we held the first informational meeting regarding facilities proposals.  You can watch the video here:  Video.

One question that was asked during the session related to how much current debt service levy was going off, on what dates.  If no additional debt services is added, it is projected that the debt service rate would drop by $1.74 in FY 15.  Current debt service would conclude with a projected rate of $1.30 in 2025-2026.

It is important to understand that the district debt service levy rate is capped at $4.05/$1000.  Any additional debt service the district is approved to levy must stay within the $4.05 rate.

The Presentation:

We will be holding several more informational meetings over the coming months.  If you have a group that would like a presentation, please contact me:  timkuehl@ccaschools.org, 319-828-4510.  We welcome the opportunity to share information with as many people as possible.

Sincerely,

Tim Kuehl
Superintendent

Facilities Moving Forward

At the work session last night the Board reached consensus on the scope of facilities work for a potential bond vote in February.

The Work:

• New Elementary Building: very similar design to the current North Bend Elementary, 3 pods, 2 preschool rooms, 4 kindergarten rooms.  Plan for an elementary sized gym.
• Purchase of land for the new elementary building.
• New MS Addition:  60,000 square foot addition on the west end of the current MS. Would have new cafeteria, library, and classroom space for 500 students.  Also, new locker rooms.
• MS Renovation:  Update HVAC system with the new addition.  Improve electrical system within the building to support increased technology usage.
• Amana Elementary:  Update HVAC system by ensuring that all classroom spaces are air conditioned.
• High School:  First academic addition will be constructed.  Current weight room and wrestling room areas will be converted to a second gym space.  New weight room and wrestling room will be added to the south.

The Cost:

• Bond language would establish a limit of $48 million total cost for all projects listed above.

Key Points:

• The need for additional facilities is driven by our growing enrollment.
• We can fund this work without raising the school tax rate.  This is due to increasing valuations, the district lowering our cash reserve levy, lowering our management fund rate, and retiring some current debt service.

There will be an informational meeting on October 8, 7:00 pm, in the high school cafeteria.  

I will be posting information on the blog and we will be hosting a number of informational meetings throughout the next few months.  The Board also anticipates announcing the building site for the elementary in the near future.

Sincerely,

Tim Kuehl