Alpine to decide on bond

OREM — The Alpine School District Board of Education will likely direct the Utah County elections office to put bond and leeway proposals on the November ballot — even though a proposal to split the district may also be on the same ballot.

"We have to move forward," Alpine Board of Education President JoDee Sundberg said. "We can't sit and kind of try to figure out where cities and towns are going. We respect the democratic process, but we're elected to take care of the needs of the children."

On Tuesday, the school board added to the Aug. 15 meeting agenda a resolution to put on the Nov. 7 ballot measures that, if passed by the public, would allow the district to issue $230 million in bonds and generate an extra $4 million through the voted leeway to build and operate new schools.

The district has promised the public that taxes will not increase above the 2005 tax rate. They will raise the money despite not raising taxes through an increase in population and property ownership, and while paying off current debt.

The district had considered delaying a bond election until June 2007, after Orem residents decide whether to pull away from the district to form their own.

But the Orem City Council has twice delayed a presentation about the feasibility of a city school district that could include nearby cities of Vineyard, Lindon and Pleasant Grove. The Orem City Council eventually will vote over putting a district split question on the November ballot.

The deadline for both the district and city to submit measures for the ballot is Sept. 23 — 45 days before election day.

"I asked as a courtesy that they would give (ballot measures) to me 60 days instead of 45 days because of the new" electronic voting machines, said Sandy Hoffmann, Utah County elections coordinator.

Orem city officials have not yet rescheduled the feasibility-study presentation, but they hope it will by the end of the month, Mayor Jerry Washburn said.

"I appreciate (Alpine District's) dilemma and the position they're in, and I know they're struggling to know what to do," he said.

The school district does not know exactly what will happen to the bond money if voters approve both the bond issuance and the school district split.

"I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Alpine district spokeswoman Jerrilyn Mortensen said.

District officials are hoping for new laws in the next year to resolve the issue.

"Really, there's no conflict," said Rep. Dave Cox, R-Lehi, who sponsored a law in the spring that changed the way school districts split, which resulted in Orem and other cities considering divisions. "Both of them can pass and it'll work out."

Any new buildings constructed with new bond money, he said, are considered assets. The new bond debt and the new assets would be divided among the Orem and Alpine districts.

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com