L-S school district passes $4.5M bond

Lynnville-Sully Community School District passed a $4.5 million bond issue Tuesday with more than 80 percent approval.

Unofficial results of the bond issue vote found 488 were in favor while 118 opposed. Shane Ehresman, superintendent of the Lynnville-Sully Community School District, said this was the school’s first chance of presenting this substantial bond issue to the public.

In order for it to pass, a super-majority vote of 60 percent was needed. Overwhelming approval of the bond issue speaks highly of the community’s support, Ehresman said. Lynnville-Sully School District administrators are “very excited” to see the community supporting education.

“Whether we’re asking for assistance through booster clubs or through our education foundation, it seems like the community is always there to help support us,” Ehresman said. “And this is just another great example.”

The last time a bond issue was passed in Lynnville-Sully was 2001.

Under the $4.5 million bond issue, the school district’s two campuses will be planning a number of safety, maintenance and accessibility projects.

Security upgrades will be furnished to the main entrances of the K-8 and 9-12 buildings. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning issues will be addressed through improvements to the geothermal system controls. Other HVAC systems will be replaced throughout the buildings.

Outdated electrical panels will be upgraded. Sidewalks will be connected to exterior doors to parking lots. Gutters and downspouts will be upgraded, too. A new multi-purpose room will be added to allow adequate physical education space for K-8 students and additional co-curricular space for practices.

A new, handicap-accessible concession stand will be installed for the football/track field and will be equipped with a storage area and 10 restroom stalls. This will help the school meet ADA compliance. High school doors will be replaced with safer door hardware, too.

Both buildings in the Lynnville-Sully Community School District are rather old.

Ehresman said one building was constructed in 1959 and other in 1981. Luckily, he said the school district has been well maintained and taken care of through the years. About every 20 years or so some major changes need to be made to the facilities.

“A lot of the improvements had to deal with maintaining our HVAC system, ADA compliance, safety with upgrading some electrical panels — a lot of things to make sure we maintain what we have and make sure we have a good learning environment for students,” Ehresman said.

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com