IRON MOUNTAIN PUBLIC Schools will seek public support May 2 to bond up to $16.93 million for several projects that would include demolishing the long-shuttered Central School and building a new elementary school at the site. (Betsy Bloom/Daily News photo)

A special election will be held Tuesday, May 2, for Iron Mountain Public Schools as the district seeks to issue general obligation bonds of up to $16.93 million for a host of projects that include building a new elementary school and early childhood center.

The estimated millage that would be levied for the proposed bonds in 2023 is 2.82 mills, or $2.82 per $1,000 of taxable valuation, for a net increase of 2.45 mills over the previous year’s levy, according to information presented to the Dickinson County Election Commission.

The county panel met this week to accept ballot language for the borrowing. The school referendum will be the only election May 2, according to Carol Bronzyk, county clerk.

On a home worth $90,000, with a taxable value of $45,000, a tax of 2.45 mills amounts to $110.

The ballot language states the bonds will be used for the purpose of “erecting, furnishing and equipping an elementary school building; erecting, furnishing and equipping an early childhood center; remodeling, furnishing and refurnishing and equipping and re-equipping school buildings; acquiring, installing and equipping school buildings for instructional technology; and preparing, developing, improving and equipping playgrounds and sites.”

The school board plans to hold a workshop to prepare a fact sheet and other explanations to help voters make a decision. The board at its Jan. 9 meeting unanimously approved a resolution calling for the special school bond election May 2.

In February 2013, voters authorized Iron Mountain Public Schools to increase its debt by $9.5 million. That measure was approved 654 yes to 571 no. It followed the defeat of an $11 million proposal in August 2012, 736 no to 690 yes.

The 2012 proposal had called for demolition of the Central School but that was ruled out in the 2013 referendum. Ten years later, after failed attempts to sell the 85-year-old structure, board discussions have again centered on razing the building.

Details of the new plan will be included in the referendum presentation planned by the district.

Under state law, expenditure of bond proceeds must be audited and cannot be used for repair or maintenance costs, teacher, administrator or employee salaries, or other operating expenses.

Information reviewed by the election commission stated the estimated simple average annual millage anticipated to retire the bond debt is 3.75 mills, or $3.75 per $1,000 of taxable valuation. The maximum number of years the bonds may be outstanding, exclusive of any refunding, is 25 years.

The school district does not expect to borrow from the state to pay debt service on the bonds. The total amount of qualified bonds currently outstanding is $6.08 million and there are no outstanding loans.

The debt levy for Iron Mountain Public Schools in 2022 was 4 mills, or $4 per $1,000 of taxable value. In Michigan, taxable value is roughly half the market value of a property.