LANCASTER, S.C. — The Lancaster County School District Board of Trustees officially passed a resolution for a new bond referendum of just over $588 million at the board meeting Tuesday, March 19.
Board members voted 6-1 for a bond total of $588,150,000 that would include projects in the Buford, Indian Land, Kershaw and Lancaster communities, along with districtwide projects.
Board member Courtney Green was the only one to vote against the bond.
With the passage, the district will now bring the bond question to voters during the general election on Nov. 5. Before then, the district is planning to educate the public about the bond with in-depth marketing tools, such as informative writing and phone campaigns.
Project details
The Buford community projects include $15.25 million in renovations at Buford Middle School, $7.75 million for science lab and baseball field improvements at Buford High, and $3.5 million for safety upgrades.
Indian Land will receive a new 2,000-student high school for $218 million and a 1,200-student elementary school for $93 million, both in the northern end of the Panhandle. Indian Land High would get new track and field restrooms, along with baseball and softball storage space for $1.6 million. Other Indian Land projects include a new turf field for Indian Land Middle for $1 million and additional metal detectors for $2 million.
Kershaw projects include a new 1,000-student elementary to replace both Kershaw and Heath Springs elementaries for $74 million. A new Andrew Jackson High School basketball gym, additional parking space and a new baseball locker room are also included for $18 million, along with $3 million in safety upgrades.
Lancaster will receive a new 1,200-student elementary school to replace both North and Clinton elementaries for $93 million, a repurposing of North Elementary for $15 million, upgrades to the Lancaster High School cafeteria and media center, along with a new softball field press box for $9.45 million, additional parking at South Middle School for $5 million, and safety upgrades for $6 million.
Districtwide, the bond includes more security cameras for $9.4 million, facility upgrades for $3 million, lighting upgrades for $4 million, elementary and middle school gym renovations for $3.2 million, and an expansion of the district office board room for $5 million.
Millage rate increaseThe bond would increase the millage rate for school debt from 65 to 79 on real property taxes across Lancaster County.
Taxes for a Lancaster County resident with an owner-occupied $300,000 home and a $30,000 vehicle would increase $16.10 per month.
For a Lancaster County resident with a $300,000 home not occupied by the owner and a $30,000 vehicle, taxes would also increase to $23.10 per month.
Debate over future
Despite the 6-1 passage, some board members felt that certain aspects of the bond didn’t address certain needs strongly enough.
Green, the only member who voted against the bond, said that the board didn’t get a chance to let community members throughout Lancaster County express their own thoughts over the proposed bond.
“My issue is we haven’t met with every community, with the exception of Indian Land. We haven’t given them a chance to speak about the bond. I understand the timeline, but I don’t want a timeline to be the reason why we make a decision that further breaks the trust the board has with the district,” she said.
Despite voting in favor, Casey Cato felt that the bond needed to address more needs in school buildings rather than prioritizing athletic needs.
Citing her own background as an educator, Cato said that children can’t learn in mobile classrooms or large class sizes of 28-30 students.
“When it comes down to it, we need education for our children,” she said.
Despite understanding the concerns about growth and investing, school board Vice Chair Melvin Stroble said that it’s paramount that the community gets behind current and future children who will attend district schools.
“I understand that there’s some trepidation associated with the bond, but we will get through this as a community. We as a community have to understand that we have to invest in our children and the future of Lancaster County,” Stroble said.
Board secretary Tyrom Faulkner agreed with Stroble’s arguments.
“We’re in a place in time where we have to proceed and do things to keep up with the rate of our children coming in, so that we have facilities to accommodate them,” Faulkner said. “We’re going to need new schools and teachers. We’re still going to have to do great things to bring great teachers to Lancaster County and to retain them.”
