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Union Asking Voters to Approve $128.6M, Five-Year Series Bond

Matt Trotter
/
KWGS

Union Public Schools will ask voters to approve a $128.6 million bond issue next month.

Voters will be asked Feb. 13 to approve a five-year series bond, not the annual bond they may be used to.

"We kind of feel like it’s best now to ask them to approve a multiyear series bond, and part of the reason why we’re doing that is we’re entering into a very aggressive building period in our district," said Superintendent Kirt Hartzler

The construction is partly to keep up with students’ participation in extracurricular activities.

"Today, more than 90 percent of our kids are involved in fine arts or athletics, and they pretty much kind of taxed us out by way of rooms," Hartzler said. "We don’t have the adequate facilities that we need for wrestling, for drama, speech and debate, and, certainly, our band program has grown dramatically."

Union will put $6.6 million toward finishing Ellen Ochoa Elementary, which will accommodate 1,000 students when finished.

"That is our newest elementary in the district, and we’ve got to get the other half of that building complete so it’s ready to open in the fall of 2019," Hartzler said.

Other projects include upgrades and structural work at 40-year-old Tuttle Stadium, and needed repairs across the district.

In addition to building projects, the bond will cover broader STEM and technology initiatives and bus safety improvements. The bond will be split between two propositions on the ballot, both requiring 60 percent majorities.

The bond will not increase property taxes above traditional levels.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.