SOUTH POINT – As the clock ticks, volunteers continue the footwork to inform voters about issues surrounding Tuesday’s vote on a proposed 4.

Saturday, August 05, 2000

SOUTH POINT – As the clock ticks, volunteers continue the footwork to inform voters about issues surrounding Tuesday’s vote on a proposed 4.99-mill bond levy that could bring new schools to the South Point school district.

The special election is one last chance for voters to pass the bond levy. Polls open at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.

South Point residents can vote on the issue at precincts Fayette 1,2,3; Burlington 1,2,3; South Point 1,2,3,4,5 and Sheridan 1 and 2, said Mary Wipert, director of the Board of Elections.

"It will be just like any other election with the exception that it only involves those residents living in the South Point school district," she said.

Voters should consider the consequences of vetoing the proposed bond levy, school officials said.

"People need to realize that of the six sites we seriously considered during the initial site selection process, this is the only site that was approved by the state in the area," said Bill Morrison, South Point Schools technology coordinator.

The district is considering the Forgey/Brothers site east of U.S. 52.

"The district will quite possibly be forced to consolidate several schools if the levy doesn’t pass," Morrison said. "The closing of schools will mean the loss of several of our academic programs."

Should the bond levy not pass, school consolidation could begin in as little as five years and could force the district to send children to neighboring schools such as Coal Grove or Chesapeake, he added.

"Five of the six sites considered were either going to cost more than what the district could spend or had issues concerning construction," Morrison said. "One of the sites was sold before we could even bid on it. The site the district is currently looking to purchase will in fact have a main access point from U.S. 52. This access will easily accommodate up to eight lanes, making access to the site very easy. Buses won’t tie up traffic on U.S. 52 and they will only be able to enter from one direction – the westbound lane."

Each of the other five sites had at least one disqualifying factor that led to the decision to pursue the Forgey/Brothers site, he added.

"Many residents are not aware of the fact that no new taxes will be imposed on them until we start using the bond money," he said. "And that won’t be for another four or five years. The current taxes residents are paying are required by the state, they’re not old bond levies."

South Point residents are paying 76 percent of their property taxes to state-required school operating funds and not the previous bond levy, officials from the Lawrence County auditor’s office said.

"Senior citizens, the disabled and surviving spouses will be eligible for a tax reduction," Morrison said. "With the Homestead Exemption, a tax reduction will be figured for those individuals with less than a $23,000 income."

Planning the layout of the schools will be a community project if the bond levy is passed, he added.

"This is going to be a community-based decision in which residents will actually get the chance to provide their input in the designing process," he said. "Residents can actually decide on the location of the schools on the site. The campus could actually be designed in such a way that each school is a quarter of a mile apart – with room to spare."