By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays USD 489 bond forum Wednesday night focused on the investment new school facilities would be for Hays.
Superintendent Ron Wilson said people think of bonds in two ways.
"They either think of it as a cost or an investment. A cost is how much am I going to have to pay," Wilson said. "An investment is what result am I going to get from the money I put into it.
"We want you to understand that everything we are presenting tonight, we want you to think of as an investment — an investment in our students, an investment in our staff, an investment in our community."
The district has no final plan of what it will bring to voters. However, officials have floated three options in public. Each option would include building a new school either a high school, middle school or elementary school.
District officials have considered phased approaches, which would require passing a second bond issue.
The most expensive option would be to build a new high school. Cost estimate is $143.5 million over a 25-year bond. The cost per month on a $150,000 home would be $33.42.
Doug Williams, director of Grow Hays, said schools are key infrastructure in the community, no different than roads or a sewer plant.
"We need to be competitive to recruit people to our community," Williams said. "Schools are critically important to bringing health care providers, teachers and businesses that are going to worry about hiring and keeping people in their business.
"We are not putting our best foot forward."
He urged the audience to trust district officials, members of the bond committee and professionals to do what is right for the community.
He also weighed cost versus investment.
"My question is what is it going to cost this community if we don’t pass a bond. I guarantee the cost is higher if we don’t do it," Williams said.
"People are not going to come here. Businesses not going to come here. If we aren’t willing to make investments, why should they?"
Dustin Roths, local business owner, said a public school bond is a hard sell for him because of the tax increase and the fact that he and his wife plan to send their children to Catholic school.
However, he said his businesses need Hays to grow. The new high school option is the most expensive, but he said he thought that would be the most likely to be accepted by fellow business owners.
"We want something that will be beacon — that is impressive. We do not want the district to look the same after investing over $100 million," he said.
An audience member asked if the district had considered how the Catholic schools would factor into the bond.
Troy Ruda, director of advancement for Hays Catholic schools, said Catholic families are being asked for significant financial investments.
They are being asked to support improvements at Holy Family Elementary and Thomas More Prep-Marian and a renovation at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church.
"What I brought to the Vision Committee meeting that we need to look at is there's only so much money in everyone's pocket," he said.
Ruda said he would likely vote for a USD 489 bond, because of the bond's importance to the community as a whole.
Catholic schools need Hays to grow too, he said.