Some voters in Sangamon County will see a referendum on their ballots in March, asking if they approve bonds totaling $110,000,000 for school improvements in the Ball-Chatham School District.

CHATHAM, Ill. (WAND) - Some voters in Sangamon County will see a referendum on their ballots in March, asking if they approve bonds totaling $110,000,000 for school improvements.

But these improvements aren't simply for aesthetics or bragging rights, said Superintendent Dr. Becca Lamon. They are desperately needed infrastructure and safety updates. 

"Right now, we are limping along and fixing things as they are and needed to be addressed, and hoping each day that something else doesn't fail," Lamon said. "We're not asking for a Taj Mahal of an athletic facility or something that we feel is unnecessary; we're asking for our kids to have an environment that has heat and proper electricity." 

Lamon said some buildings have gotten so bad that they've struggled to keep classrooms warmer than 50 degrees in the winter. Many of the district's schools have boiler issues or struggling water lines. The superintendent also said one of the school's fire suppression systems is 70 years old and has daily false alarms. 

"Right now we are in a reactionary model, and we would like to move to a proactive model," Lamon said. "Right now, we are waiting for something to fail before we address it, which is not ideal or cost-efficient." 

The district says the true increase for taxpayers will actually be $27 million, because in previous years, they've paid about $83 million for debt. For example, Lamon said a home worth $250,000 will be taxed $145 a year if the referendum is approved. 

"This referendum is an investment in our community, people come to Ball-Chatham because it's a destination district," Lamon said. "People want to be part of this school system, and we feel that our students deserve and our staff deserve to have the best facilities that they can, just for our learning environments."

The referendum question that will be on the March 17 ballot reads in full: 

"Shall Ball-Chatham Community Unit School District Number 5, Sangamon County, Illinois, alter, repair and equip school buildings and facilities, including constructing safety and security, mechanical, infrastructure and classroom space improvements, replacing fire alarm systems, upgrading security cameras and doors, repairing roofs, ceilings, floors and interior walls, replacing windows and electrical, plumbing and HVAC systems, improve school sites and issue bonds of said School District to the amount of $110,000,000 for the purpose of paying the costs thereof?"

The district has a list of the needed improvements and a way to calculate tax impacts on its website.

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