Referendum Edition

⏰ Reading time: five minutes, 45 seconds

• Question 2 features a gymnasium addition large enough for four full-sized basketball courts, dramatically improving access to indoor physical education, athletics, and community recreation.
• The facility could host a variety of sports and activities, including community programs such as pickleball.
• Note: Question 2 is contingent on Question 1 passing. If Question 1 does not pass, Question 2 cannot pass.
• Cost: $18.725 million.

Question 2, if it passes, will have a substantial and cascading impact on students throughout the district and facility access for community members. The high school has only one gym for 1,250 students and there are more requests for community and youth athletic association access to gyms than space available. Question 2 addresses many school and community needs:

• Many people forget that a gym is a classroom. Additional gym space will benefit our physical education teachers and their classes.

• Since there is only one gym on the high school campus, teams practice at the middle and elementary schools after school. The gym expansion allows these practices and activities to be held on the high school campus.

• Due to high school practices in their gyms, elementary and middle school students are displaced and have limited access to after-school activities. If Question 2 passes, elementary and middle school activities would be able to use their gyms after school.

• Minnesota law mandates that school districts incorporate a storm shelter capable of withstanding an F4 tornado when expanding their schools. If Question 2 is approved, the expanded gym could be reinforced to serve as this storm shelter, allowing funds from Question 1 to be allocated for additional improvements.

• The expanded gymnasium would support increased community access for recreation and other activities, including a walking track.

Northfield Raiders head basketball coach and alumni Matt Christensen described what he sees as the impact of Question 2. “The lack of gym space has resulted in late nights for young kids practicing, community classes being restricted and high school sports competing for practice and competition space,” said Christensen. “Reimagine Northfield High School provides a unique opportunity to provide much needed gym space to meet the growing needs of multiple community groups.”

• If Question 3 passes (contingent on Questions 1 and 2 passing), the plan includes upgrading the new HVAC systems included in Question 1 by installing a geothermal system to heat and cool the building.

• Cost: $6.975 million.

Question 3, if it passes, would improve the facility’s sustainability and save operating costs:

• Geothermal technology leverages the consistent temperature in the ground and heat pumps to heat and cool facilities much more efficiently than traditional HVAC equipment.

• According to Wold Architects and Engineers, a geothermal approach is essential in moving away from dependence on fossil fuels and will expand the opportunity to offset the building's energy use with on-site renewable power.

• The improved efficiency will reduce the total building energy use by up to 60% providing energy cost savings of up to 25%.

• Any operational cost savings have a positive impact on the general fund, the same fund we use to pay teachers and staff.

• On October 21, Carleton College offered a tour of its geothermal system, installed in 2020. You can view the slide deck here.

Carleton College has pledged $2 million toward facility improvements included in the Reimagine Northfield High School bond referendum.

If the first bond referendum question passes on Nov. 5, 2024, the district would sell $2 million less in bonds than proposed. This generous pledge from Carleton marks a unique milestone, being the first of its kind from a Minnesota private college toward a public school district bond referendum project. Read more about the pledge.

Early voting has started in Minnesota. You can learn more about early voting at your county or city websites:

• Rice County
• City of Northfield
• Dakota County
• Goodhue County

The Northfield School District has a history of being good stewards of bond funds. Two examples are:

• In 2018, voters approved $41 million to address facility needs at the district’s elementary schools. Because of the district’s AA+ bond rating and a great bid day, the district bonded for $39 million — $2 million less than the voters approved. The projects were completed as scheduled and on budget with approximately 60% of the build time during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The district is finishing paying off the Northfield Middle School debt. Because of diligent attention to the markets and strategic refinancing of debt, Ehler’s, Inc. estimates that taxpayers paid $4 million less in interest than initially projected.

You can learn about your personal tax impact by using the district’s tax impact calculator, provided by Ehler’s, Inc.

Some taxpayers may qualify for one of Minnesota's property tax refund programs. You can learn more at https://www.revenue.state.mn.us/property-tax-refund.

One property tax refund program that can assist homeowners is the Homeowner's Homestead Credit Refund. This year's criteria for a regular refund includes:

• You owned and lived in the same home on January 2, 2023, and on January 2, 2024
• Your home's net property tax increased by more than 12% from 2023 to 2024
• The net property tax increase was at least $100
• The increase was not because of improvements you made to the property

This information is from the Minnesota Department of Revenue's Homeowner's Homestead Credit Refund web site.

There is also a renter's property tax refund program. You can learn more about that program here.

The Northfield School District does not discriminate on the basis of sex and prohibits sex discrimination in any education program or activity that it operates, as required by Title IX, including in employment. You can learn more at: https://northfieldschools.org/about/departments/human-resources/ under the Title IX tab.