WAVERLY - On Tuesday, voters will determine if a new middle school is in the cards for the Waverly-Shell Rock School District.

Residents will vote on a bond referendum not to exceed $18.925 million. If approved, bonds would be used to help construct, furnish and equip a school to house fifth- through eighth-grade students. The measure requires 60 percent of the vote to pass.

District officials estimate the proposed 139,500-square-foot facility would cost around $24 million. Plans put the school on 30 acres of district-owned property in southwest Waverly near the Bremwood campus.

Building new has been part of the district's long-term facilities plan for years but flooding last June - which damaged two district schools and closed a third - pushed the idea to the front burner.

Washington Irving Elementary, which housed the fifth and sixth grades, sustained $2.8 million in damages and remains closed. The junior high, home to the seventh and eighth grades, is repaired and open for business.

"The flood kind of just changed everything," Superintendent Jere Vyverberg said.

Project proponents argue that the flood, which displaced about 250 Washington Irving students, staff and teachers, creates a compelling case for the building project and its time line. The Irving community goes to school in renovated space at Willow Lawn Mall, which the district leased.

Advocates of a new middle school also hope a recent award from FEMA - which Vyverberg estimated to be at least $6 million, depending on construction costs - along with the school board's commitment to paying off bonds with sales tax revenue whenever possible, will make a building project palatable to taxpayers.

But at a public forum about project finances in March, some district residents voiced concerns about funding and the prospect of property tax increases. Recently, members of that same tax base have urged Waverly's city officials to cut spending and hold the line of taxes, citing an uncertain economy and a community still recovering disaster.

Deb Turnball, president the watchdog group Waverly Citizens United said Tuesday's outcome isn't obvious.

"I think it's going to be close," Turnball said.

Floods and financing

As the bond referendum vote nears, administrators and proponents continue to provide information about the building proposal and factors influencing it. Since February, members of WSR Building for the Future, a citizens committee backing the referendum, have hosted informational meetings and tours at local schools. An information-gathering session is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Waverly Public Library.

The group also has sent mailings to every voter's household in the district, said co-chair Kelly Flege.

"Right now our big push is to encourage everyone to get out and vote," Flege said.

Last Tuesday and Thursday, district officials opened a flood-damaged Irving for public viewing. The elementary and other flood damage in the district are the major reason school officials are pursuing the project now.

An optimistic time line puts students in a new middle school as early as the fall 2011, Vyverberg said.

"We wouldn't be seeking what we are seeking if it wasn't for the flood last summer," he said. "I think the people understand, at least I hope they understand, this wasn't something we were planning on this soon."

Dennis Harper, state public assistance officer, wrote to the district that damage at Irving is in excess of 50 percent of its replacement cost and recommended permanent relocation. Harper and a hydrologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources concluded the school will be subject to future flood damage.

Joanne Folkerts, a district employee, visited Irving during an open house. She thinks building new makes sense.

"They might as well go ahead and build the new school for the generations to come," Folkerts said.

"I think if you are going to build now is the time to do it," she added.

Rhonda Koepke, a district parent, appreciates that the new building design appears to keep grades separate by placing them in different levels or wings. She also favors a new building because it means her kids will make fewer moves from building to building over the course of their academic careers.

"I really like the fact that there will be less transition," she said.

Koepke also is encouraged that modern building designs are more conducive to students with disabilities. Her daughter Megan, now deceased, used a wheelchair to get from class to class at the junior high but in Koepke's opinion, the setup was less-than-ideal.

Koepke sees advantages to building sooner rather than later. She noted financial aid available through FEMA and a climate she sees as conducive to bonding and building.

"It would cost us so much less to do it (now)," Koepke said.

Skepticism

Not everyone is convinced.

Lyle Engel of Waverly also visited Irving last Tuesday, noting he'd never before been inside the school.

"Oh, I can't believe they are going to tear it down," Engel said. "I'd like to see it turned into a school like it's supposed to be."

Vyverberg said its premature to talk definitively about the future of Irving prior to the bond referendum and its outcome.

Waverly resident Bill Henning, who said he retired this year as a maintenance worker for the district, has already cast an absentee ballot against the referendum.

Henning sees plans to build new as an example of "poor judgment." He'd rather see the district invest in fixing and maintaining existing buildings, including Irving and the junior high.

"I think it's just not handled right," Henning said.

The Waverly resident also is concerned how recent flooding would effect the district's property tax base and the assessed values of homes.

"All I can say is they can look forward to some nasty tax increases," Henning said.

Funding

Voters would see a less than $1.60 increase per $1,000 taxable valuation over 20 years, starting in September 2010, officials say.

Vyverberg strongly supports the district's new building proposal, though he declined to predict the outcome of Tuesday's vote. Rather, the superintendent encouraged district residents to vote on the issue, adding that he wants people to feel well-informed as they head to the polls.

"I just hope that we've been able to provide all of the information that people need in order to make an educated decision," Vyverberg said. "We've gone through what I think are great lengths in order to provide all of the information that we could.

"I hope people feel comfortable with that."

Contact Karen Heinselman at (319) 291-1581 or karen. heinselman@wcfcourier.com.