4th School Coming To Manhattan After Voters Back Referendum

MANHATTAN, IL — Manhattan voters turned out to the polls Tuesday and decided they want a fourth school to be built in Manhattan School District 114.

Residents approved a referendum on the ballot that will allow Manhattan SD114 to issue bonds up to $85 million for the creation of the fourth school in the village.

Manhattan voters were asked:

Shall the Board of Education of Manhattan School District Number 114, Will County, Illinois, improve the site of and build and equip a new school building and issue bonds of said School District to the amount of $85,000,000 for the purpose of paying the costs thereof?

At 9:20 p.m., the Will County Clerk's Office reported an unofficial total of 1,385 "yes" votes against 683 "no" votes, with 100 percent of precincts in the district reporting.

Election results will be official after canvassing on July 19, according to the county clerk. Provisional ballots cast on Election Day and all remaining vote by mail ballots that are postmarked by Election Day will be counted by provisional count on July 12.

Manhattan SD114 currently has three schools: Anna McDonald School, Wilson Creek School and Manhattan Junior High. The proposed fourth school would house junior high students, as well as allow for projected future growth, according to the district.

Manhattan SD114 has seen an increase of 596 students since 2010, according data from the district. The total enrollment for 2022 was listed as 1,843, spread across the district's three schools.

The district listed enrollment at the three current schools at around 50 to 75 students above capacity at each school. The proposed fourth school is meant, in part, to reduce the overcrowding at the three existing schools, as well as to prepare for future growth that the district anticipates.

The district projected that, with a fourth school, the number of students at Wilson Creek would drop from 726 to 500, Anna McDonald would drop from 563 to 400 and the existing Manhattan Junior High would drop from 554 to 400. The proposed fourth school is projected to serve 570 students.

The proposed fourth school would serve students in sixth through eighth grade, according to the district.

Wilson Creek School would shift to serving students in Pre-K through first grade; Anna McDonald School would serve students in second and third grades; and the existing Manhattan Junior High would switch to serving students in fourth and fifth grades.

The new school would be located along Smith Road, directly east of the current Manhattan Junior High School, according to the district.

That land is currently owned by the district, so no additional cost would be required to purchase land for the proposed school.

According to the district, homeowners would not see an increase in their tax rate paid to the district.

The district and its board of education have pledged to maintain that current tax rate of $4.25. Any increase in the dollar amount to Manhattan homeowners' taxes would only come from either: an increase in the tax rate from the other, separate taxing bodies; or an increase in the assessed value of the homeowner's home, according to the district.

The district already currently makes a bond payment of close to $4 million annually. It stated that it feels confident it can pay up to $4.5 million in bond and interest. Based on a 1.5 percent growth rate and a bond payment of $4.5 million over 30 years, the district could borrow up to $73 million at the current tax rate of $4.25. The district said it can construct the new building within that amount.

Construction could begin by Aug. 1, according to the district. The district expects the project to take between 16 and 24 months. The new school would then be ready to open in August of 2024.