In upcoming weeks, board members of the region’s three largest public school districts will consider asking voters to approve funding proposals on the Nov. 8 ballot.

Colorado Springs School District 11, in central neighborhoods, Academy School District 20, which covers the northern part of the city, and Falcon School District 49, stretching to the east, are looking at presenting property tax increases, bond issues projects, or both to fund capital and operational expenses.

Education officials have been buoyed by recent successes: the April victory of a city sales tax increase in Woodland Park to benefit schools, a mill levy override in November to increase salaries and fix schools in Manitou Springs, and a $45 million bond issue in 2014 to pay for an expansion to Cheyenne Mountain High School and other District 12 improvements.

The upcoming general election and Gov. John Hickenlooper’s declaration that state funding for schools won’t return to pre-recession levels any time soon – thus schools should look for local support – make this year ripe for school initiatives.

“As our needs have become more and more evident, we could have gone to the polls last year, but you usually have higher voter turnout during a presidential election, so we decided to wait,” D-11 spokeswoman Devra Ashby said.

Under the Fair Campaign Practices Act, school districts can’t use government money or resources to influence an election. But they can tell voters about their needs.

Colorado Springs School District 11

Two years ago, D-11 launched a “Vision 2030” campaign to “educate the public about the funding crisis in K-12 education in Colorado and what it’s going to take to prepare our district for our graduating seniors of 2030,” Ashby said.

D-11 receives less money from the state than it did during the recession in 2009, she said, down $1,000 per student or $27 million less per year.

And it’s been more than a decade since D-11 asked voters for money. Both a mill levy override and bond issue were approved in 2005.

Now, a scorecard indicating which buildings need repairs or renovations and in what time frame has been compiled.

D-11 has some of the oldest schools in the region – some of which have no air conditioning – and even the newest buildings are more than a decade old, Ashby said.

“The average age of our buildings is 48 years old, and just like homeowners, we need to address boilers, roofs, windows, security, outdated learning spaces and other infrastructure,” she said.

The district also seeks to bolster teacher pay and attract minority faculty and other staff members.

“Surrounding states start teachers at a much higher rate than Colorado, and we’re looking at major recruitment challenges,” Ashby said.

District enrollment has declined and a change in demographics means about 80 percent of voters no longer have school-aged children. Maintenance projects have been put on hold, Ashby said, although some say there is a correlation between strong neighborhood schools and higher property values and lower crime rates.

The project is in the second phase of discussions between business and community leaders, neighborhood organizations, government officials and others. A citizens’ group is forming to advocate for a ballot measure that likely will include both a mill levy override and a bond issue.

“We’ve taken a foot campaign to heart, meeting with people, telling them what we’re facing and answering all their questions,” Ashby said. “That relationship-building has been valuable.”

The district has not announced how much money it seeks. Chief Financial Officer Glenn Gustafson said D-11 has a maximum new-bond capacity of $311 million. Bond issues are capped at 20 percent of assessed property valuation. Principal owed from the 2005 bond issue measure is $143.8 million.

Academy School District 20

A 29-member growth and capital needs committee consisting of parents, teachers, staff, students and community members has met regularly since October. The task: identify needs for new construction, building improvements and technology infrastructure.

They’ve studied future development and corresponding enrollment projections. And each school in the district presented the committee with a wish list.

“The committee spent many grueling hours prioritizing some 100 or so projects in the remodel/additions category,” chief financial officer Tom Gregory said at a recent public forum.

The committee was to send project recommendations and a funding formula to the superintendent Friday. The committee likely will present a report to the board at its June 2 meeting, and the board will decide whether to go to voters with a financing measure.

D-20 voters last approved a bond issue in 2001, for $163 million. New borrowing could not exceed $230 million, Gregory said. Voters also approved mill levy overrides of $12.75 million in 1999 and $14 million in 2008. The total levy is capped at 60.216 mills.

By 2022, 6,200 new houses will be built in D-20 boundaries, yielding an estimated 3,800 new students, Gregory said. High schools and elementary schools in the eastern section of the district already are feeling the pinch, with some 400 more students than capacity, he said.

No projections have been made as to the timing of any proposed projects, Gregory said. In terms of remodeling, older buildings would get more funding than newer ones. New schools most likely would be part of the proposal, but it’s unclear how many.

Some parents at the meeting questioned why D-20 is considering building new schools when it has a high amount of “choice” students, who live in geographic boundaries of other districts.

Out of the region’s 17 public school districts, D-20 had the highest net gain of students this school year, at 3,642, according to Colorado Department of Education statistics. About one in every five of the 25,063 students attending D-20 schools live in other districts, primarily Colorado Springs D-11 and Lewis-Palmer School District 38.

“There are many schools in need of repair, and I would like District 20 to fix our schools before spending funds on building a new high school,” said parent Stacy Arredondo.

Committee member Vernita Hare, whose children are D-20 graduates, said she wanted to be involved with the process because she loves the district.

“It’s important to me that it continues to be a quality district,” she said, “and this committee has worked very hard and takes their charge very seriously.”

Falcon School District 49

D-49 presented two financing questions to voters in 2014. One passed, one didn’t.

What got approved: a mill levy override that did not increase taxes but did reformulate funds from a 2005 election to increase teachers’ salaries, improve security and technology, and upgrade post-graduation preparation.

What failed: a tax increase to build several new schools and expand existing ones. Similar measures also failed in 2010 and 2011. Voters disagreed with the lists of projects and priorities the district put forth to address overcrowding and growth at schools.

D-49 is weighing another mill levy override for November that would not raise taxes.

“Last election, voters indicated they want to support our schools, but a tax increase is not something they’re willing to support,” said board president Marie LaVere-Wright.

An override would replace the expiring debt and not raise taxes but continue the existing mill levy. The measure would net $7.6 million annually. Of that, $1.2 million annually over 25 years would be used to renovate the district’s three largest high schools. The money would create flexible learning space at Falcon and Sand Creek high schools, and add an auditorium and secondary gym at Vista Ridge High.

Expanding Internet connectivity, improving the look and function of existing schools in 10-year cycles, boosting teacher salaries and building two elementary schools also are part of the plan.

The new schools would cost $23 million each and be financed over 25 years. One would be near Falcon Middle School and the other in Banning Lewis Ranch, which currently has a charter school.

The potential proposal would take advantage of last year’s refinancing of bond debt, which shortened maturity by five years and reduced the levy on that debt by 1 mill to 10.159 mills.

The total mill levy for property owners in D-49 is 44.365. A mill equates to $1 of property tax for every $1,000 of assessed value.

The approach wasn’t possible until the district refinanced to save more than $2.5 million and pay off its general obligation debt at the end of 2017, said chief financial officer Brett Ridgway.

If voters reject such a proposal, the 10.l59 mills would decrease to 6 mills next year and expire after that, Ridgway said. That would yield a savings of $20 on a $300,000 house, he said.