Bloomfield, Richland on list for interest-free bonds

The Bloomfield and Richland School Districts were among the 60 school districts that will receive interest free federal bonds to pay for construction projects that were approved by voters in recent elections.

Voters in the Bloomfield District approved a $1.5 million bond issue for renovations to the elementary and high schools in the April election. The bonds will add 27 cents per $100 of assessed valuation to the tax rate in the district. Voters at Richland approved a $750,000 bond issue for renovations to the high school. The bonds were to be paid through an extension of the current tax rate.

Gov. Jay Nixon announced recently that dozens of Missouri school districts will receive a combined $146,348,000 in interest-free federal bonds. Qualified School Construction Bonds awarded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will go to 60 school districts around the state and help those districts pay financing costs connected with projects that are creating jobs and improving school facilities.

Dr. Nicholas Thiele, superintendent of the Bloomfield District, said the federal bonds will save district taxpayers money through not paying interest on the bonds. He said the district had applied for Quality Zone Academy Board funding which he hoped would be received so that the entire $1.5 million bond issue would be tax free.

Bloomfield has already retained a contractor, Pyramid Roofing of Sikeston, to replace the roof on the elementary building. The district also intends to replace the roof on the high school, add some space to the high school and replace the HVAC system.

Thiele said materials had been ordered to start construction on the new roof at the elementary building and he hoped construction could begin by mid-June. The board moved quickly on the project in hopes that the roof could be completed before the start of the new school year.

Superintendent Mike Kiehne at Richland said the Richland District is also seeking Quality Zone Academy Board funding for the remainder of the $750,000 so that the entire amount of the bond would be interest free. He said the criteria for the Quality Zone Board funding was more stringent and based on a percentage of students qualifying for free and reduced meals, as well as a requirement for a private partnership participation. He said the Richland District meets both requirements.

Kiehne said Honeywell, Inc. has been hired as the performance contractor for renovations to the HVAC system in the high school. He said the new system would allow more individual temperature controls in the classrooms and be more energy efficient. He said the school was trying to get away from the "boiler room" system of heating.

The front windows and walls of the high school are also to be replaced. Kiehne said the old single pane windows will be removed and new thermal windows and a new insulated wall will be installed. The contractor for that project is Miller Drywall.

"Missouri school districts that have identified ways to fund projects and have gained the approval of taxpayers will benefit greatly from the Qualified School Construction Bond program," Nixon said in a release. "Districts will be able to borrow more than $146 million, interest-free, to help them build. This demonstrates that timely, taxpayer-endorsed investment in critical capital needs is a smart move, particularly when incentives reduce costs."

The Qualified School Construction Bond program absorbs costs that would otherwise be incurred by school districts that have issued voter-approved bonds for construction projects, effectively allowing districts to borrow funds without paying interest. Bondholders are provided with federal tax credits in lieu of the interest that would ordinarily be paid by the school districts which issues them. Through the program, bondholders receive full return on their investment while school districts are able to finance school construction projects less expensively, creating jobs in local communities.

In other Southeast Missouri school districts Cape Girardeau received $4,203,408 and Pemiscot County R-III received $178,232.