Lemont High School Voters To Decide On Debt Service Referendum

LEMONT, IL — On Tuesday, Lemont voters will decide on a proposition from Lemont High School on whether to increase its debt service extension.

Voters who live within Lemont High School boundaries, which includes Lemont and portions of Darien, Downers Grove and Woodridge, will see this question on the ballot:

"Shall the debt service extension base under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law for Lemont Township High School District Number 210, Cook and DuPage Counties, Illinois, for payment of principal and interest on limited bonds be increased from $249,604 to $5,000,000 for the 2022 levy year and all subsequent levy years?"

The Lemont High School District 210 Board of Education approved putting the referendum question on the ballot at its Aug. 18 meeting.

If the referendum is approved by a majority of voters, there would not be an increase to the annual debt service burden for taxpayers, the district has said, and District 210 will have access to consistent funding in order to make necessary improvements on campus on an as-needed basis.

The district has developed a facility improvement plan, and updates to classrooms, especially science labs, STEM learning spaces and areas for career and technical education, are a high priority in the plan.

A debt service extension base represents the maximum annual tax levy that a taxing body can extend to pay principal and interest on its non-referendum debt, according to the district. This amount is different for every school district; some school districts have a base in the millions of dollars.

Taxpayers approved infrastructure bond referenda in 1996 and 2006, the district said. The last payments on outstanding bonds will be made in 2028.

The district said it will not exercise its increased debt service extension base until its previously scheduled bond debt is retired.