NEED
Does the school need renovation. and, if so, how much?

1. Most residents agree that the facility needs attention. The heating and ventilation system is failing, the roof has leaks and areas of rotten underlayment, the envelope has poor insulation and rotting windows and siding, the temporary addition (“caboose”) is reaching the end of its useful life, the area in front of the school frequently becomes congested and dangerous, drainage problems result in a need for frequent road surface maintenance.
   
   
2. Like cars and homes, public buildings need major repairs at relatively predictable intervals. The Lincoln Community School has been on a reasonable 20-year cycle. (Built in 1954; renovated about 1970, 1992, and again now in 2011.)
   
   

FUNDING
If the school needs extensive renovation, what’s the best way to minimize the effect on taxpayers?

Thanks to the hard work of the board and the ANeSU business office, our school has been pre-approved for a remarkable funding mechanism, a Qualified School Construction Bond (QSCB). Thanks to federal stimulus dollars and the particulars of the repayment scheme, we will almost certainly pay back less money than we borrow.

1. The interest rate of 1% over 16 years saves $529,684 compared to a traditional bond.
   
   
2. In addition, the bond reimbursement plan requires the town to deposit our yearly payments into a sinking fund, from which a final lump sum payment will be made at the end of the bond period (16 years). The sinking fund will earn us a return as it grows during that same period. That rate of return will be greater than the 1% interest we would be paying. At current rates, the sinking fund will earn us about $237,000 extra over the life of the bond. We will pay back less than we borrow. or have a surplus at the end that we can apply to lower taxes in succeeding years.
   
   
3. Total savings over a traditional bond may therefore be $529,684 + $237,000 = $766,684 – over 3/4 million dollars.
   
   

AFFORDABILITY
The financial resources of Lincoln residents vary widely. What’s affordable to some may not be to others. However, the board is convinced we will pay a much higher overall cost if we do major renovations piecemeal over the next ten years than we will if we elect to do them all at once now. Voters may decide that despite the higher long-term cost they would prefer to postpone some projects until a later date when their financial circumstances may have changed.

1. The QSCB provides predictable payments compared to spending as-needed (see below)
   
   
2. Thanks to deep cuts proposed in the budget, the estimated education tax rate in 2011-2012 with the bond may be about the same as last year’s rate. Some cuts may prove challenging to sustain in the long term. (More tax information HERE.)
   
   
3. An example of as-needed spending: If we were only to repair the heating system next year (it is failing), the cost would be about $300,000. If this were a part of the regular budget, the increase in taxes would $.11 over the current estimated tax rate for next year. For a home valued at $250,000, that means an increase in taxes of $1,300 dollars. The following year we would need to replace the roof at an expense of about $175,000 while continuing to spend a fairly large amount to keep other outdated systems running. The year after that we’d need to spend perhaps another $300,000 on the building envelope.
   
   If were to borrow to make these repairs, we would be forced to do so at market rates and to pay back over a period of years, as with the bond.
   
   

BEST BET:	This website
QUESTIONS:	A public meeting scheduled for February 21, 7pm at the Lincoln Community School
CONTACT:	A school board member   Marian Bouchard 453-2449 Dave Venman, Chair 453-3540   Tim Brokaw 453-5613 Henry Wilmer 453-4614   Donne Sargent 453-6426

Back to top

Previous Page