Schools in Antioch, Calif.'s older district could soon see some upgrades following the school board trustees' approval of $10.75 million in new bond sales.
Antioch Unified School District agreed on Jan. 22 to issue the final of five general obligation bonds approved in 2008 under Measure C to generate $61.6 million to renovate the district's aging schools.
The money will mainly benefit schools that are at least 50 years or older. The list of renovation projects will come before the board for approval at a later date.
The district will repay the loan using revenue from a parcel tax, with residents and commercial property owners in the older school facilities district, SFD 1, paying $60 per $100,000 of assessed value.
The district has been putting money into its facilities for improvements for more than 10 years, with general obligation bonds paying for the bulk of the work, according to AUSD financial consultant, Dave Olson of Backstrom McCarley Berry & Co.
"We're demonstrating a commitment to put money into the facilities on a regular basis," he said at the board meeting. "And, as long as we are realistic about what we can put in, and that we are committed to putting money in on a regular basis, moving forward we are going to get to a place where we'd like to be."
Besides Measure C, voters passed Measure B in 2012 to pay for improvements at Antioch High School, but all of those bonds have already been issued.
Voters will be asked on March 3 to consider another bond measure, Measure T, which calls for the creation of a new school facilities district, mainly in the newer areas of the city, with residents there paying for the bond based on their property values. That bond is for $105 million to upgrade schools that are 20 years or older in that district.
Olson explained that Antioch Unified has been selling bonds over an extended period of time as property values and interest rates affect the amount of money that flows into the district's coffers as well as how much it needs to spend to repay the loan.
Olson said that the district's tax base fell by 40 percent in 2002, which slowed AUSD's issuance of bonds.
"Now, we have been able to slowly get back to Measure C," he said. "Now our tax base is growing again by 5 or 6 percent a year and interest rates remain low, so we can finally get at the last $10 million or so with a prudent financial plan."
Based on an estimated 4.5 percent interest, which Olson said will likely be lower, the bond repayment will be $16.2 million. All of the bonds from Measure C should be paid off by 2036, he said.
The board approved the sale on a unanimous 5-0 vote. It will approve the financial details at the Feb. 12 meeting.
The district anticipates that renovation work will begin as soon as this summer, according to the staff report.
