Elections are being held in several communities around Southwest Michigan on May 5, and voters in the Bridgman Public Schools district will have a couple of questions to consider.
The big ticket item is a $21.45 million bond request that Bridgman Superintendent Shane Peters tells us would pay for basic building improvements.
“We’re talking at all three of our buildings,” Peters said. “New roofs, new HVAC systems, some security updates at all three of our buildings. Our parking lots are in grave repair. And, really, it’s just infrastructure.”
Peters says the bond is strictly about keeping facilities functional and up to date, noting some of the HVAC and plumbing systems date back to the 1970s.
“There’s no Taj Mahal being built. This is all just general infrastructure things. The district has done a good job over the years of maintaining, but there just comes a point just like in our own houses when our water heater goes out, it needs to be replaced.”
Peters adds the bond won’t raise anyone’s taxes. It would simply keep in place the current tax rate of 0.88 mills because older debts are expiring at the same time this new one would come on the books.
“Really, what we’re asking our residents in the Bridgman school district is to extend that .88 for an additional 12-14 years. And as that gets extended, that would give us that $21.4 million to work on really some infrastructure projects.”
Additionally, the district is asking voters to approve a renewal of the district’s operating millage. Peters says it’s critical to Bridgman Public Schools, accounting for the majority of its revenues.
“We’re out of formula, we don’t receive any state revenue. So this is truly our bread and butter of how we operate the entire Bridgman Public School District.”
The operating millage only applies to non-homestead properties like commercial properties and second homes.
“With Bridgman’s unique funding structure, this is like 75 to 80% of our total revenue that the district receives. So this millage renewal is one that is of vital importance to the district in passage. It’s a renewal. It is for the non-homestead millage, which really provides between 75 and 80% of our total funding for school operations.”
The millage is typically up for renewal every three or four years, but Peters says the district this time is seeking a ten-year renewal.
“Some people might question why 10 years. As we know, elections do cost money. Local entities do have to pay for the election, so the board thought it would be financially responsible for a 10-year renewal. I’ve been here 16 years. We’ve done it about four or five times, and this is always a measure that has passed three to one, four to one in the past. But this will be a 10-year renewal. It will go from 2027 through 2036.”
Peters is urging residents to approve the millage renewal as the levy pays for everything from building operations to staffing to programming.
The district is planning an informational forum on the ballot questions. It’ll be on April 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Bridgman High School.