It’s more than just the presidential election on Manitowoc County ballots.
Four school districts in the county are asking the taxpayers for help through a referendum.
Each of the referendums are for upgrades to facilities and in some cases, money needed for staffing.
Kiel Superintendent Brad Ebert explains in a statement to the community that their referendum is asking district residents if they should continue to invest taxpayer dollars into the middle school given its age or move away and build a new facility and attach it to the high school.
He says that while someone might ask if it’s time to build a new middle school, inflation down the road could cause “the price tag to increase dramatically.”
Residents in the Mishicot School District are being asked if the district should be allowed to spend no more than $29.5 million on numerous upgrades, such as a new pick-up and drop-off area for parents and facility upgrades like additional lockers in the middle and high schools.
Other projects include upgrading an aging band room, replacing baseball and softball dugouts, and parking lot work.
In the Valders Area School District, their referendum is asking if the district is allowed to exceed $1.5 million for four years to attract teachers to the district while making sure they can pay everyone who works there now.
Superintendent Kristen DeTroye explained to Seehafer News before that state aid is not keeping up with the rate of inflation, causing a “lag in what we are able to provide for students.”
Manitowoc County residents who go to Sheboygan Schools are also being asked a referendum question.
The Sheboygan Area School District is asking district residents to invest in and remodel Urban and Farnsworth Middle Schools on site since both buildings are approaching 100 years old.
For anyone who hasn’t early voted, polls will open at 7:00 am on Election Day and close at 8:00 pm at your polling site.
