Osseo School Board Mulls $225M Referendum

Voters in the Osseo School District may be asked to consider a $225 million referendum this fall. 

The Osseo School Board discussed the issue on April 25 and expects to vote on the proposal this May.

If approved, the referendum would provide funding for infrastructure improvements across the district. Included in the costs is $61 million for a new elementary school in northwestern Maple Grove.

The district also plans to use bonding funds to improve safety and security at all school buildings. Other projects would include the modernization of library spaces, construction of outdoor classroom spaces and updated classroom learning spaces.

Cory McIntyre, Superintendent of Osseo Area Schools, speaks to the board on April 25.

“This need is really to provide necessary classroom space to reduce class sizes and meet the growing enrollment challenges that are coming,” Osseo Superintendent Cory McIntyre said. “From the project list you can see that this plan provides substantial improvements for all schools throughout the district.”

The district recently asked voters to approve an operating levy and technology levy on the ballot in 2022. Voters approved that request. 

While the board did not cast a formal vote on the proposal, two members said they were skeptical about moving it forward.

District says it needs space and improvements

According to McIntyre, if the district does not move forward with the expansions planned in the referendum, class sizes will increase across the district. 

School boundary changes would likely impact two out of three district students, McIntyre said. 

McIntyre estimated that the district would need to cut 300 jobs.

“It’s been more than 20 years since the community has been asked to reinvest in our school buildings,” McIntyre said. “Many districts that neighbor us in the metro have been doing this in the last 20 years, who we honestly tend to compete with for enrollment.”

If voters approve the bond, the district would also accelerate the plans in its $150 million building maintenance program.

According to the district, homeowners with property values of $300,000 could expect their taxes to increase by approximately $7 per month.

School Board support for the referendum

Board members Jacquelene Mosqueda-Jones, Tanya Simons, Heather Douglass and Sarah Mitchell spoke in favor of the proposal. 

Douglass said she “unequivocally” supports sending the proposal to the ballot.

“If our community has the opportunity to vote on this and they decide that it isn’t something that they want to contribute to, then that’s a different story,” Douglass said. “But as a fiscally responsible board, the entire time that I’ve served this board has been working towards this. We have spent hours and thousands and thousands of dollars on working towards this.”

Simons said she appreciated the district’s decision making process.

“We have known this was coming, so this was not a surprise,” she said.

Opposition to the referendum

Board members Thomas Brooks and Tamara Grady were more skeptical of the plan.

Brooks said he would like to know more about alternative proposals and stakeholder engagement before voting.

“In an environment where residents just months ago were asked for multiple tax increase with inflation remaining high, I do not feel comfortable asking taxpayers, particularly those barely squeezing by, so soon for additional funding,” he said. 

Grady questioned if it was necessary to build a new school in Maple Grove.

“I still have questions about the need and the fairness of the new school,” she said. “One, on taxpayers — it’s really hard to go referendum one after the next and the next year when taxpayers are worried about inflation and property taxes increasing. I think it might be a mistake to go for it this year.”

Osseo Senior High School

Park Center Senior High School

Brooklyn Center | Brooklyn Park | Maple Grove | Osseo | Plymouth