$16.2 Million School Bond Up For A Vote In Guthrie

School officials in Guthrie said they have been trying to scrape up the money to fix major problems at old schools in the district for years. In fact, it's been a decade since a bond measure has passed.

Central Elementary School in Guthrie was built in the 1920's. It's time for some major repairs.

The roof needs to be replaced and the brick needs some attention, but inside it's even worse.

The school keeps experiencing water leaks in classrooms, the heat and air system is ancient, and they use hand-me-down computers from Edmond Schools.

And hope of any help hinders on the passing of a bond measure on the May 12 ballot. But that hasn't happened since 2005.

“Guthrie has failed eight of the last ten bond issues,” Superintendent Mike Simpson said.

And on top of that Simpson said there's been an increase in enrollment.

“Through that time since 2005, we've grown by about 300 to 350 students.”

So now more students are filing into crowded classrooms with soiled ceilings and a hit-or-miss heating and air system. Schools officials hope these kinds of conditions won't sit well with the community and this year the bond will pass.

“We have a community that maybe you've got to reach a higher threshold of trust with and that's what we're attempting to do with the ballot language. We've got it all spelled out on the ballot,” Simpson explained.

The $16.2 million would give Central, Fogarty and Upper Elementary Schools the upgrades they need along with some work at the junior high and high schools.

If it doesn't pass, Simpson said they'll just have to do the best they can.

“But our students are not going to have the environment that they need to have the best education possible,” Simpson said about if the bond fails.

The final public forum for discussion on the bond measure is Thursday, May 7 at the Lazy E Arena at 7 p.m. To pass, the bond measure must secure 60 percent of the vote.

The bond would also pay for a new elementary school east of Charter Oak Road and Douglas Boulevard.