Latest news with #Savannah-ChathamCountyPublicSchoolSystem
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Savannah-Chatham school's ESPLOST referendum vote happens Tuesday
For nearly 20 years, buying dinner at the famous Olde Pink House downtown or purchasing a large Moon River Mocha Cutter's Point in Sandfly has contributed to public education. So, too, have a myriad of other sales purchases as a result of the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System's Educational Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST). Next Tuesday, March 18 marks citizen's final day to vote on whether or not the school district should enter into the fifth iteration of the sales tax. Superintendent Denise Watts noted at a Wednesday press conference that historically over $400 million ESPLOST funds have been invested back into the community through contracts with local builders, suppliers and other service providers. Chamber President and CEO Bert Brantley also spoke at the event, citing the district and school board's "commitment to our students, in particular, your focus on literacy, absenteeism and math" as influencing the Chamber's endorsement. He said Chamber members experience those issues "every day in the workforce" as well and welcome a community effort to address them to ensure a "ready-made workforce that will meet the needs, not only of today, but also tomorrow and in the years to come." Here is what voters should know before heading to the polls. Early voting started on Feb. 24. The ESPLOST special election will be Tuesday, March 18. Mail-in early voting ended on March 7. In-person early voting ends on Friday, March 14. The school district's ESPLOST V would raise approximately $705 million through a continuation of the 1% penny sales tax for Chatham County. ESPLOST V funds would be used for: Property acquisition for and building of new public schools; Existing school projects that could renovate, reconfigure, and equip schools and athletic facilities; Safety, security and technology upgrades and enhancements; Various technology and facilities projects for three of the district's five public charter schools: Coastal Empire Montessori Charter School, Savannah Classical Academy and Tybee Island Maritime Academy. The school district has listed specific proposed projects for voters to review. Many projects remain in the early phases of design and development since they rely on the funding to move forward. Key highlights include replacing the facility for the STEM Academy at Bartlett Middle School, reimagining 208 Bull Street as both administrative offices and an educational space dubbed the Bull Street Center for Architecture and Design, and Pooler's first high school (as part of a larger educational complex in West Chatham on Pine Barren Road). An extensive list of county-wide projects can be found within the Dec. 18, 2024 resolution for the referendum approved by the school board. Here's exactly how the ESPLOST question will read on election day: Shall a one percent sales and use tax be imposed in the Chatham County School District for a period of time not to exceed twenty consecutive calendar quarters in order to raise not more than $705,000,000 for the purpose of (a) constructing new schools and additions to schools; (b) renovating, reconfiguring, and equipping schools, support facilities, and athletic facilities; (c) modernizing and improving system-wide administrative, and site improvements, property acquisition, upgrading and replacing mechanical systems, HVAC, and roofing; (d) providing safety, security, and technology upgrades and enhancements; (e) providing Charter School capital outlay projects to Coastal Empire Montessori Charter School for equipment/buses, site improvements, technology and secure facilities; Savannah Classical Academy technology and campus security improvements and repairs to roof and HVAC systems; and Tybee Island Maritime Academy equipment and technology improvements. If imposition of the tax is approved by the voters, such vote shall also constitute approval of the issuance of general obligation debt of the Chatham County School District in the maximum principal amount of $200,000,000 for the above capital outlay purposes and for the payment of capitalized interest. ( ) YES( ) NO Groups in support of ESPLOST tend to cite its focus on providing high-quality facilities to meet modern learning and workforce development training needs in the county. Proponents such as the Savannah Chamber of Commerce have also highlighted that visitors to Savannah have contributed over 40% of past ESPLOST revenue, so the burden does not fall squarely on county residents. Brantley encouraged the public, regardless of their position, to show up at the polls next Tuesday. "This is your chance to have your voice heard in the way that your government operates," he said. Opponent groups such as the Chatham County GOP have stated that ESPLOST burdens citizens with yet another tax coupled with the rising cost of living and inflation increases. Such groups argue that the school district should focus on improving use of existing fiscal resources such as millage rate tax revenue and other forms of state and federal funding. They also advocate for more exploration of private partnership opportunities. Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@ and JoeInTheKnow_SMN on Instagram. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah public schools special tax election will be Tuesday, March 18
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Liberty, Chatham Counties to hold ESPLOST vote in March 18 election
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) — Liberty and Chatham Counties will hold a vote on continuing the Educational Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST). The vote is for or against continuing a one percent use and sales tax for the funding of projects for educational purposes. Hundreds of millions of dollars of school safety projects will be decided by this election. The Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS) highlights ESPLOST's achievements on their website: Over the span of the ESPLOST construction program, the district has replaced 22 schools, provided technology improvements for teaching and learning, and added safety and security enhancements at nearly every school in the district. SCCPSS has administrative oversite over 50 schools, plus a number of other sites and administrative buildings. Every facility requires upkeep and some buildings are much older than others. Liberty County has already shared their sample ballot for the measure, which includes the specific number of net proceeds by the tax, $112,000,000. That ballot can be viewed below. LIBERTY-COUNTY-SAMPLE-BALLOT-3-18-25-ESPLOSTDownload Early voting has already begun for the special election. To find your precinct, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Early voting has begun for Savannah schools' ESPLOST V vote, Chamber endorses measure
More than $700 million in proposed public school facility projects is on the line March 18, when residents not too winded from the St. Patrick Day Parade and Festival celebrations can head to the polls to vote on the fifth iteration of the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System's Educational Special Local Option Sales Tax or ESPLOST. For those who wish to avoid the St. Pat's overlap, early voting began Monday. Voters can review proposed plan highlights at dedicated ESPLOST V page. ESPLOST I and its subsequent extensions of the 1% sales tax have brought in over a billion dollars to the school district's coffers and alleviated bond debt. A recent endorsement by the Savannah Chamber of Commerce noted growth in Western Chatham County as a main driver of the Chamber's support. President and CEO Bert Brantley also cited support for how the school district's facilities investments factor into investments in teachers and curriculum to create "stronger educational outcomes and a more skilled workforce." A skilled workforce is tantamount for local business leaders as the region amps up to meet the demands of the manufacturing industry growth due in large part to the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America facility in Bryan County as well as the Georgia Port Authority's expansion. Here's a look back at how past ESPLOST votes may provide insight for the program's future. Georgia first adopted and implemented the Special Purchase Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) as a financing tool for counties in 1985. In 1996 the laws governing SPLOSTs were expanded to include education systems within counties. Savannah-Chatham County Public School System leaders first pursued an ESPLOST referendum in 2006 under the leadership of former school board president Hugh Golson and former superintendent Thomas Lockamy. The Savannah Morning News reported in 2017 on Lockamy's retirement and he reflected back on ESPLOST. The reporting stated that the original ESPLOST plans were meant to "replace aging campuses" but were "adjusted so the board could fund the Passport plan. Passport's primary focus was building K8 schools in growing West Chatham suburbs and creating high-end academic specialty schools that would stop white and middle class flight." Major ESPLOST projects have included the construction of a $37.3 million New Hampstead High School in West Chatham (ESPLOST I), nearly $70 million toward the construction of three new K-8 schools (ESPLOST II) and the roughly $180 million Davis-Edwards-Harris Educational Complex (ESPLOST IV). The complex's initial budget was $118 million, but building supply costs skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and delays due to subsequent change-order needs raised the academic building costs by roughly $30 million. The complex's athletic facilities and fieldhouse project is still underway with costs exceeding $33 million on that separate contract. Additionally, the school board approved a $2.6 million bid by the Samet Corporation to update the complex's Career, Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) building from open studio-space initially designed for use in cinematic or digital career development. The updates will include aviation and sheet metal labs, an aircraft assembly area and heavy equipment operations training area per a December 2024 email from the district's Public Information Manager Sheila Blanco. She stated that changes to the space are to "support the needs of the immediate surrounding community" particularly related to future growth and alignment to workforce needs geographically close to the complex. District leaders and board members cannot predict certain factors like supply chain challenges and costs or public sentiment toward facility plans approved years early. So ESPLOST project adjustments have been common occurrences. For example, ESPLOST III had intended for the DEH educational complex to be a K-12 facility. Then, after construction had been well underway, public pushback led Superintendent Denise Watts, who inherited the project from former Superintendent Ann Levett, to reimagine it as a 6-12 facility. Similarly, ESPLOST IV initially called for renovating Bloomingdale Elementary School, but district leaders ultimately decided it would be more fiscally responsible to do a full rebuild. The decision impacted funding amounts as did unforeseen supply chain cost increases due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both factors forced the school district to table some ESPLOST IV projects, which now appear in ESPLOST V. The district's proposed ESPLOST V projects have left room for adjustments, as well. Projects such as the new vision for 208 Bull Street and a new educational complex in West Chatham to include a K-8 school and Pooler's first high school remain in development even as the referendum date approaches. Despite alterations to the scope of ESPLOST projects over the years, the public has continued to show support at the polls for extending it. While voter turnout has fluctuated due to national or local races coinciding with ESPLOST ballot measures, the public has approved ESPLOST in every iteration. ESPLOST I vote on Sept. 19, 2006 *Special election Total: 23,801 Yes: 13,276 (60.28%) No: 10,525 (39.72%) ESPLOST II vote on Nov. 8 2011 Total: 39,313 Yes: 26,930 (67.13%) No: 12,923 (32.87%) ESPLOST III vote on Nov. 8, 2016 *Presidential Election year Total: 108,020 Yes: 64,468 (59.68%) No: 43,552 (40.32%) ESPLOST IV vote on Nov. 2, 2021 The 2021 general election did not include any statewide or national elections. - not sure this is needed but interesting Total: 22,612 Yes: 16,765 (74.14%) No: 5,847 (25.86%) All previous referendum votes took place in November. Whether bucking that trend for ESPLOST V favors the school system or not this time around will become clear on March 18. Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@ and @jschwartstory84 on This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Early voting started Monday for Savannah schools' ESPLOST V vote,
