Education is one of the single most important investments of our lives.  I'm a huge supporter of all kinds of education, at every age.  So it is with a sad heart that I speak out against the proposed 2008 Coeur d'Alene School District Plant Facilities Levy.  

The largest portion of the levy, $19 million of the planned $31.1 million dollar total, is for a new Lakes Middle School building.  The district wants to tear down the old school and build a brand new school on the same land.  To understand the problems with this idea, you have to look back at the history of this endeavor.

Let's start way back in 1954, when the building was constructed.  It was the high school back then. Some of the old timers who helped build the school remember it as a strong building with reinforced infrastructure and great masonry work. They recall the architect, Benny Rule said he designed it to last 200 years.  Future expansion capabilities were built in and the whole south side of the building was one big room at first, with partitions added later so those rooms could be resized if needed. 

Three of our four kids went through Lakes Middle School in the '90s, where they did very well. They went on as honor students through Lake City High School, honor students through very good colleges and are now finding great success in their chosen fields.  It's not the building that teaches the child.  Our children did well because they had wonderful teachers.  (And their parents weren't half bad either.) If I could vote for a levy to increase the salaries of the teachers, I'd jump at the chance.  They are underpaid but dedicated individuals who make a difference in the lives of children every single day.

However, none of this levy money can be used for teachers or salaries. This levy is only about buildings, land and equipment. But, sadly, it's also about the irresponsible spending of public money.  It's about poor management and lack of due diligence in the planning process. 

I contacted the school district a few weeks ago to get some specific, detailed background information.  Last Friday afternoon, right before they closed for Spring Break, the district finally sent me an email letter.  It contained almost none of the information I had requested.  But what it did contain was shocking.

By their own direct admission to me, on the phone and in person, the school district did not request nor receive any bids for remodeling Lakes Middle School.  They did not have any written information upon which to base the remodel part of their decision.  Read that again.  There were no bids for the remodel.  They asked a couple of contractors, who told them it would probably cost about the same, so they should build new.  No numbers, no estimates, no documentation.  It's a $23.6 million dollar decision to build a new building.

The School District, along with the School Board and the Long Range Plan Review Committee, have failed to do their homework.  Where was the research? Where were their questions?  It reminds me of the old saying, "Not to know is bad. Not to wish to know is worse."  This overt lack of due diligence could not pass anyone's common sense test. 

But wait, there's even more.

Don't forget that back in 2002, we approved a $10 million dollar levy to...remodel Lakes Middle School!  Well, the school was never remodeled.  Some of the money went to finish off the Ramsey Elementary expansion and some went for various other things...you know how it is, a couple million here, a couple million there and suddenly, oh my, we don't have enough left to fix Lakes Middle School.

We gave the district $10 million specifically to remodel Lakes, but they didn't do what they promised. Then they proceeded to hire an architect and plan a brand new building instead. That was not the deal; that was not our agreement. They changed the equation.  And now they want to tear down the 50 year old building that was built to last 200 years.  Let's not. Let's fix up the aging beauty and set our sites and resources on better compensation for our teachers. Yes, that would be a wise investment. Buildings don't teach, but great teachers are the investment of a lifetime.

I'm voting NO on this levy.  I'm voting NO on wasteful, poorly planned use of public money.  And I'm voting NO on treating taxpayers like we are dumb...we're not.  We had great teachers. 

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One of our readers at the new website for local issues: http://opencda.com is a cartoonist.  He has sent  in some great political cartoons based on the info and comments on our web site.  There's one he sent in last week on this very topic.  Please go to our new web site to check it out.