The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-12-08
Policy is Outlined in Formal Manner
and Given to Voters Who Will
Decide Proposed Bond
Issue.
COST WILL BE SMALL
For Property Actually Assessed at
$1,000 Increase in Taxes Will be
$40 Year for Twenty
Years.

questions which are being aSke
about the cost of the proposed ne1
high school building, and the polio
Of the board in the matter Of pay
ment of debt, use of the old buildin
and other similar queries, forma
statement has been made by tn
board and signed by each member.
The board, contrary to some re
ports, has no intention of tearin
down the present high school build
ing, but will refit it at nominal cos
to use for manual training an.
domestic science purposes. Neithc
does the board expect to begin build
ing until satisfactory building condi
tons prevail.
The cost of the new bonds to tn,
tax payer who has property subjec
$1,000, will be $40 per year durin,
the next twenty years. The presen
tuition list is paying the interest a
five percent on $4,000 worth 0
bonds, and an increased tuition lis
added to the rental of extra room!
now being used would pay interes
on half of the 100000 bond issu,
asked.
The Boards Statement.
The official statement from the
board is given here:
Keokuk, Iowa, December 4, 1920.
The board Of education wishes
to give the voters of the Keokuk
school district as full informa-
ton as possible with reference
to the proposed new high school
building, and the following is in
tended to answer great many
questions that have been asked
about the proposed bond issue:
Location.-The site between
Fourteenth and Fifteenth on
Main street, is as near the center
of population as it was possible
for them to secure adequate
grounds. 1t was felt that the
building should have adequate
grounds and should not be erect
ed on anything less than at least
one-half block. The site procured
cost less than any other possible
site that would be at all salts
factory 1t is accessible from all
parts of the city.
Present high school building
The present high school building
will be used for manual training,
domestic science and business
courses, and also as a Junior high
school, taking care of that por-
ton of our school system which
Is now becoming congested and
crowded just below the high
school. AS it is situated near
It will probably eventually be-
come the place for the seventh
and eighth grades, or any classes
just below the high school that
may be arranged, and the
manual training and domestic
science work. With the expen-
diture of a reasonable amount of
money we feel that it may be
made serviceable for number
of years, and believe that loca-
ton to be the best for building
suitable for the requirements
above indicated.
The amount.-After consider
ing various building propositions
that have been carried on in the
state of Iowa within the last few
years with reference TO new high
school buildings, we concluded
that it would require at least
100000 to give us building
adequate for our needs for the
next twenty-five or thirty years.
East Waterloo is just completing
a building contracted for in 1917,
at an expense of $475 900. Other
cities that have built since, of
substantially the same population
and requirements, have voted
from 100000 to 100000. We
felt that we could put up salts
factory building with s500,0GO by
taking time and carefully calcu-
lating the building costs.
The Financial Program.
Financial prOgram.-At the
time of authorizing the election,
in response to petition of more
than 1000 voters, the board
entered on its minutes a declara-
ton of its policy, to the effect
that the building would not be
erected until satisfactory building
conditions prevailed, to the end
that the building might be erect
ed within the amount authorized;
also, that the bonds would not
be sold until they could be sold
at a price wholly satisfactory to
the board, as the board would not
care to place the bonds upon the
market at the present prevailing
high rates. 1t is the hope of the
board to sell the bonds on a five
percent basis.
1t is the desire of the board
that the bond issue be now
authorized so that it will enable
the board to take advantage of
the money market so as to dis
pose of the bonds to the best ad-
vantage of the district, and also
to be in a position to take ad-
vantage of building conditions so
as to put the building up at the
minimum of cost. In the mean
while, it will give the board an
opportunity for carefully con-
sidering the plans and many