NEENAH, WI (WTAQ) – Voters will decide if the Neenah School District will have nearly $130 million for a new middle school and other improvements next spring.
The school board approved going to referendum in April.
The referendum dollars will be split up into multiple projects.
- $31.2 million for infrastructure upgrades in each district building
- $5.4 million for upgrades to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act
- $4 million for safety and security enhancements such as entrances and additional video cameras
- $5 million to renovate the technical education area at the high school
More than $83 million would be used to replace Shattuck Middle School.
Paula Lehrer from Neenah is concerned about tax increases and doesn’t find a new building necessary.
“I don’t think they need to replace it [Shattuck Middle School], because they have upgraded it in the past and it can be done again,” she says.
The referendum would increase taxes on a home worth $100,000 by $167 per year., according to the district.
Tierney Potter from Neenah has a different view on the referendum.
“They need the right facilities to have a better education for a better future for our country,” she says.
Potter doesn’t have children that attend the public school, nonetheless, her support remains.
“I see that education is an important aspect in our community,” she explains.
Neenah Joint School District Superintendent Mary Pfeiffer agrees in the importance of education to the community. She believes families in the area are ready to pitch in.
“Our community is ripe,” she says. “What I mean by that, they are ready to help us.”
She says of nearly 4,000 people who responded to a community survey, 61% support replacing the school.
“Overwhelmingly our community feels that it’s time to begin a new middle school,” she says.
Open houses are scheduled to begin in February.
- Feb. 20, Shattuck Middle School, 6 p.m.
- March 6, Neenah High School, 6 p.m.
- March 20, Shattuck Middle School, 6 p.m.
