New Albany-Plain Local school board members on June 25 said they were in favor of a combined ballot issue this November to generate funds for a new building and to cover operating costs.

The amount and length of the bond and levy requests have not been determined, but most of the board members favored a 2.48-mill bond issue and a two-year, 4.24-mill operating levy.

The school board intends to finalize ballot issue amounts at its July 16 meeting.

If the board chooses the currently favored scenarios, the bond issue would generate $45,120,442: $33,693,722 to build a 150,000-square-foot building and funds to improve traffic flow and safety around that building, the middle school and the 2-5 elementary building.

It would cost $75.94 a year per $100,000 of assessed property value.

The two-year operating levy would cost $130 a year per $100,000 of assessed property value. It would prevent the district from an estimated deficit of $8.7 million in fiscal year 2015.

The school board approved a resolution June 25 to have an attorney prepare legislation for the combined ballot issue and a resolution of necessity to be sent to the Franklin County Auditor’s Office and the Ohio Department of Education.

The combined issue must be filed with the Franklin County Board of Elections by Aug. 8.

Read the July 5 edition of the ThisWeek New Albany News for the full story.