After failing a referendum just over 10 years ago, the district needed guidance on how to successfully engage the community. Utilizing BLDD’s planning process, the district and community focused on assessments of existing conditions - Physical Needs Assessment, Functional Assessment, Space Utilization, Student Population Map, Classroom Observations, and a series of other checks and balances to ensure all stakeholders knew as much as possible about the existing buildings.
The community was kept informed through a task force composed of key community leaders that helped the team formulate the assessments. In open Community Engagement Sessions, community members were presented all data pieces. The engagement team listened and learned from the community to pinpoint their biggest concerns, including having a plan in place for all retired buildings and revitalizing the existing sites for play fields. Concerns with existing utilities, sports fields, and the Ag field at their Jr/Sr High site as well as traffic issues were all addressed.
The community engagement was successful and resulted in the overwhelming passage of No Tax Rate Change Bond Referendum, generating $33 million in funding for the district.
Just over 10 years ago, prior to working with BLDD, the district sought a referendum to combine the three elementary buildings and build a new elementary on their Jr/Sr High site. Community engagement was minimal and the community did not approve the plan. The district needed a path for engaging the community to successfully pass a referendum in order to plan for the future of the district.
The community engagement was such a success that some community members who attended the first meeting stating that they planned to vote no, ended up voting yes, and convinced others to VOTE YES as well! The referendum passed 70/30 overall.
BLDD’s proprietary software, QLEO, was used to analyze the data to find the right plan for the future of the district — a new Pk-5 Elementary on the current Jr/Sr High School site. Currently, the district and design team are developing plans for the new K-5 facility. Check back soon for project updates!
Overwhelming community support and passage of No Tax Rate Change Bond Referendum, generating $33 million in funding.
In January 2019, Mehlville School District embarked on an ambitious journey to reimagine its facilities for the next generation of learners. What began as a grassroots effort to assess facility needs has transformed into a $35 million comprehensive campus improvement initiative that touches every school in the district—all without increasing the tax burden on local residents.
In 2017, District 186 embarked on a two-year comprehensive master plan that led to a successful sales-tax referendum. The journey involved the coordination and cooperation of many entities with differing missions uniting for a common goal.
As the Iowa City Community School District grappled with the challenges of rapid enrollment growth, aging facilities, equity concerns, and a desire for future-focused learning environments, they turned to the BLDD/Unicom•ARC team. The mission: conduct a comprehensive community engagement planning process to shape a long-term facilities master plan.