Voters in the Muskego-Norway School District pass a two-question facilities referendum totaling $44.6 million

Alec Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·2 min read
Voters on Tuesday approved renovations for Muskego High School as part of a $44.6 million referendum.
Voters on Tuesday approved renovations for Muskego High School as part of a $44.6 million referendum.

Voters in the Muskego-Norway School District on April 5 approved a two-question facilities referendum that totaled $44.6 million.

The first question asked voters whether they would approve $27.8 million for the construction of an addition for technical education, science, technology, engineering and math areas and renovations at Muskego High School, as well as the construction of an addition and renovations for a gym and converting the current gym into a cafeteria at Lakeview Elementary School. Voters approved that question with 3,733 votes (61.3%) while 2,355 (38.7%) voted no.

The second question asked voters whether they would approve $16.8 million for the construction of additions for the medicine and health sciences areas, as well as an indoor practice facility, which would be open to the public, and renovations at Muskego High School. Voters also approved that question with 3,348 votes (55.2%) while 2,270 (44.8%) voted no.

The Muskego-Norway School District said the tax impact of the referendum will not increase over the district's 2021-22 tax rate of $7.15 per $1,000 of property value.

"Due to careful planning and the prepayment of prior debt to reduce interest expenses, if one or both referendum questions are approved, the tax mill rate would not increase over the current level," the district said in an informational brochure. "The total debt obligations of these projects, if passed, could extend debt payments an additional 3-8 years depending on final debt structure."

For example, a resident with a home worth $401,300 would pay a total school tax of $2,329.

The district said the referendum was needed to address decades-old classrooms, space and scheduling constraints and limitations on the kinds of courses that can be offered.

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Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Muskego-Norway voters pass schools referendum in 2022 spring election