by Parker H. Jimison
A group of 50-60 Shepherd residents gathered in the Shepherd High School gym Tuesday evening, May 21st, to discuss the future of the school bond effort that failed two weeks ago. This was the first of three scheduled meetings to determine how to change the current plans to improve Shepherd’s current school facilities, with the next two taking place on June 4th and 11th also in the Shepherd gymnasium. Jeff Kanning, the head architect who is currently working for free on the proposal, was there to answer any and all questions posed to him by the public but left the majority of the conversation to the attendees themselves.
Although most in attendance agreed that the school is in desperate need of funding to fix and expand current structures, there is a debate on what really needs to be done. The main problem most voters seem to have had with the bond was the $17.9 million price tag that would increase the property tax of Shepherd residents by an amount many saw as too burdensome. Many people voiced the belief that the bond had failed because of a lack of information about exactly what the money would be used for and requested a breakdown of where their tax dollars would be going. Others made the point that many older folks in the Shepherd community are living on a fixed income and just could not afford to live out here if the bond passed at $17.9 million. Some in attendance were of the opinion that the renovations to the junior high and high school should be foregone entirely, allowing them to pass a smaller bond for just the elementary school which is in desperate need of additional space for classrooms. Others argued that if this was done, the problems with the junior high and high school would just continue unchecked and would be needed later anyway, most likely with a higher price tag.
While it wasn’t challenged that the need for additional classrooms is dire and needs to be included, almost all in attendance agreed that some things in the original plan could be removed as a way to bring down the final price, with a call to “take out the frills” being repeated multiple times throughout the meeting. Kanning agreed with this and said they are already removing the new space for administrative offices and a community room from the plan. Many also called for the removal of a new space designated for a weight and exercise room and a multi-purpose high ceilinged lunch room, calling them unnecessary. A former student athlete pointed out that the current weight room is inadequate and that a new one would be of great benefit not only to the sports teams but to the student body as a whole, while Dave Peil gave a passionate defense of both the workout area and the multi-purpose room, calling it a smart decision as it combined several needed areas into one and saying that “it’s not going to get cheaper and it’ll always be needed.”
From here the School Board will get together with Kanning and his firm, Collaborative Design Architects, to form a new design plan taking into consideration the feedback they have received. At the next meeting on June 4th, they will present the new plan and give a breakdown on the pricing of specific items. This is also an open meeting for public comment and all are invited to come and voice their opinion so that the school can figure out how to go about putting together another bond initiative for this fall.
