PRESS RELEASE
Passing Bond Referendum Puts Our Schools First
This fall, voters in Iredell County will have an historic opportunity to pass a bond referendum supporting $131 million for facilities in Iredell-Statesville and Mooresville Graded Schools and at Mitchell Community College. The bond referendum supports projects across the county, big and small, creating new campuses and uplifting old ones.
“Passing this bond is a win-win for our schools and our community,” says Vickie Sawyer, spokesperson for Our Schools First, an advocacy organization supporting the bond referendum. “In addition to providing much-needed facilities in every part of Iredell, this bond will ensure our local schools have a safe and inspiring setting for providing the terrific education delivered every day to our students.”
Mooresville High School will receive $40 million in bond funds to completely renovate their existing classroom building, replace their structurally deficient gymnasium, and construct a new auditorium space.
Iredell Statesville schools will receive nearly $80 million, which will be spread across five sites. Brawley Middle School and Statesville Middle School will each receive new campuses, and their current facilities will later be inhabited by Mount Mourne and Northview IB Schools. North and South Iredell High School’s auditoriums will also be replaced, adding band and chorus rooms as well. Cool Spring Elementary School will receive a much-needed facility upgrade to replace their historic and obsolete building, which suffered critical heating break-downs last winter.
Mitchell Community College will construct a 40,000 square-foot Health Sciences Building at its Statesville campus to support existing programs in nursing, medical, and EMT-Paramedic training. The facility will expand capacity in these high-demand programs, which provide well-trained health professionals in our community year after year.
The bond referendum isn’t a done deal yet. Iredell County voters still have to approve both the public school and community college bonds on November 4. The bond referendum received near-unanimous support from the Republican Iredell County Board of Commissioners, and both Mooresville and Iredell-Statesville Boards of Education have endorsed the project. “This is a great time to do these projects, and we’re doing it in a smart and conservative way,” Commissioner Ken Robertson, Republican of Mooresville, said. “Voters have to choose, but the right choice is to help fund our schools.”
If both bonds pass, property owners will see taxes increase by a slight margin. The average homeowner in Iredell County will see a tax bill increase of $70 per year, which breaks down to a little more than a dollar per week.
“I have started my day every morning for the past 6 years volunteering at K-2 drop off and many hours inside and outside Cool Spring School,” local parent Melissa Neader said. “The entire staff works very hard teaching, and they deserve a cleaner, healthier, safer facility.”
For more information about the bond referendum and about our schools first, visit www.ourschoolsfirst.com