Crickets were chirping in the Glen Lake auditorium as school officials were ready to host a community information night Monday regarding the Nov. 5 bond attempt.
Nobody showed, but school officials still await Nov.5 with urgency.
Glen Lake decided to pursue a bond for $8.175 million in August to fund infrastructure projects at the school.
“We just need some help getting across the finish line,” Glen Lake Superintendent Jason Misner said. “The board’s been really good at constructing a budget that’s using our funds to be able to take care of needs. We just need a little help. The feedback we received is so important. We really tried to value the feedback we got from our surveys after the failed bond attempt ... It was a great collaboration. We tried to mirror what our community was telling us.”
Glen Lake is preparing to spend $23 million in capital improvement over the next 10 years.
But as of October 2024, they don’t have enough capital to finish replacing its aging HVAC system.
Back in August, along with the $8 million bond, Glen Lake verbally committed $3.5 million out of their capital projects budget to purchase new hot water boilers and to replace the outdated steam boilers. This will also convert the existing system in the 1957 portion of the building from steam to a hot water boiler system. This immediate need will update the infrastructure and ceiling tiles in the oldest portion of the building that was constructed in 1957. This replacement project will begin in the spring of 2025. The scope of the bond also includes replacing the outdated unit ventilators and connecting to the new hot water boiler system.
Glen Lake will be transitioning to higher efficiency hot water boilers. Efficiency will also mean cut downs on operational costs, according to Misner.
The school has already had to turn on the boilers for heating after a cold spurt earlier this month that resulted in multiple repairs of the current system, according to Misner.
If the bond doesn’t pass, Glen Lake will have to mull how to appropriate funds for future projects.
“It really can’t wait,” Misner said. “These boilers are at the end of their life cycle. This is not something where (the boilers) can improve a little bit. They are limping ... We are spending a lot of money on them. The time is now. There’s not too many heating seasons left in these (boilers).”
If the bond passes, this will allow Glen Lake’s 10-year capital improvement plan to remain intact to address other needs including roofing. Roughly $12 million will be coming from the general fund.
Over the last five years the district has replaced windows with upgraded energy efficient window units, replaced the entire septic system, and created single-point secured entries into the building for both the high school/middle school area and elementary/ superintendent area that were completed a few weeks after school started.
