Dubuque Community School District’s middle school proposal

The Dubuque School District is asking residents to vote yes on a bond referendum. The vote would be for 70 million dollars in funds to demolish Washington middle school and build a new one on the same location.

The school district says that while construction of a new building is expensive, renovating the existing building would be more so. In the short term the new building would be more expensive, but over the building’s lifetime, it would actually save money.

The Dubuque Community School District has held informational meetings for residents. According to their website, Washington’s building is over 100 years old, which is one of the main reasons given for demolition of the existing building. Consolidating the middle schools from three to two will also reduce operating costs and free up budget money for other areas.

The vote for the budget will be held November 4th and needs 60 percent approval to pass. If the vote passes property taxes for residences would increase, but it affects each property owner differently.

All information and photos comes from the DCSD website. For the full information on this topic, visit their website here.