By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press
Voters within the boundaries of the Copperas Cove Independent School District will see a special election on their Nov. 4 ballot, a $165 million bond package.
On Tuesday evening, the CCISD board of trustees voted unanimously to call for the election.
There will be three Propositions, with each to be considered separately.
According to the one-sheet provided by CCISD, Proposition 1 totals a little more than $142 million. These dollars would fund renovations at Copperas Cove High School, Fairview-Jewell Elementary, and Copperas Cove Junior High School.
At Copperas Cove High School, $107 million would fund roughly 152,000 square feet of classroom renovations, upgrades to 50,000 square feet of interior space, a cafeteria expansion to seat 900-plus students, a Career & Technology Education (CTE) center at 74,636 square feet with student storefronts, and upgrades to the library.
Fairview-Jewell Elementary would see nearly $22 million in upgrades, to include building renovations with all restrooms to be made accessible, classroom additions from existing spaces, and relocating Specialties and the cafeteria.
Copperas Cove Junior High School would see a little more than $13 million in renovations, among which includes a cafeteria expansion with new restrooms, along with building renovations, corridor upgrades, and classroom finish upgrades.
Proposition 2 totals a little more than $12.2 million. It includes a band hall addition and storage renovation, existing fine arts finishes upgrades, as well as multi-sports locker room additions and renovations.
Proposition 3 totals $11.2 million. This would fund a multipurpose field and cover.
At this time, there are no schematics or other details available for viewing.
During Tuesday’s school board meeting, several members of the facilities advisory committee were present. Altogether, the committee was made up of 45 to as many as 80 members.
Jennifer Cotter, one of the committee members, addressed the board on Tuesday.
As part of the district’s facilities evaluation conducted by the committee along with input from the Texas Association of School Boards, Cotter said it was determined that roughly $400 million in facility needs were identified over the next 10 to 20 years to modernize the district.
“Throughout this process, we have been educated on a variety of critical topics, school finance, construction cost, the district’s needs assessment, enrollment trends and recent curriculum changes,” she said. “We’ve also reviewed previous bond proposals and marketing, incorporating valuable community feedback. Using this knowledge, we prioritized the district’s needs, carefully aligning them with current school finance laws and available funding.”
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