School districts say now is a great time to build

(Deseret News) Despite the recession, school district officials point to low construction costs and dipping interest rates as excellent reasons to go forward with bond elections for school building needs.

"We can get a bigger bang for our buck," said Granite School District Superintendent Stephen Ronnenkamp.

Davis School District is opening an elementary school in fall 2010. A prototype of the new school is Foxboro Elementary School in west Kaysville, which opened this fall. The 2010 school is being built for $2 million less.

"Construction costs have gone down that much," Superintendent Bryan Bowles said. "It's a good time for us to build."

Davis, Granite and Duchesne school districts are asking residents for approval to borrow money to expand, replace or build new school buildings. Residents will have the opportunity Tuesday to vote on their districts' proposed bond referendums for capital projects.

Duchesne District's proposal would mean a tax hike for its residents.

However, Granite and Davis residents would see no increase in property taxes if the bond referendums pass because the two districts have paid off old bond debts. This is despite misleading wording required by law on Tuesday's ballots.

The Utah Taxpayers Association has endorsed Granite's and Duchesne's proposals and remains neutral about the Davis bond.

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