Plymouth School Board advances plan for school building improvements with bond issuance

The Plymouth Community School Board took a significant step Tuesday evening towards funding essential improvements across its school buildings, approving resolutions for a general obligation bond issuance. This move aims to address critical needs such as roofing, windows, security enhancements, and various facility upgrades.

During the second preliminary determination hearing, Dennis Otten, an attorney with Bose McKinney & Evans, explained that the school corporation plans to issue general obligation bonds to finance a broad range of projects. These include improvements to roofs, windows, carpeting, security systems, gyms, and athletic fields.

State law requires the school corporation to conduct two public determination hearings before adopting a resolution to issue bonds. Additionally, a "1028" hearing is mandated for projects exceeding $1 million, and a third hearing is required for the appropriation of bond proceeds to cover project costs.

Lindsey Simonetto from BakerTilley provided an overview of the corporation’s current debt, noting two outstanding bond series from 2018 and 2022. While current annual payments are approximately $6 million, this amount is projected to decrease to about $4.5 million in 2027 and again in 2028.

The school corporation's calculated general obligation bond capacity stands at just over $6.3 million. However, by pre-paying the July 15, 2026, payments on its existing general obligation bonds, this capacity could increase to a maximum borrowing amount of $7,141,000. It was noted that the new bond would be paid off within seven years.

The impact for a homeowner with a median home value of $172,100 within the Plymouth School Corporation boundaries had an estimated impact of approximately $2.03 per month, or $24.40 annually. Simonetto also clarified that these bonds would be included under the circuit breaker tax cap, meaning any property already at its tax cap would not see an additional increase to its tax bill.

With no questions from either school board members or the audience, the Plymouth School Board proceeded to adopt the preliminary determination and 1028 resolution, the additional appropriation resolution, and the bond resolution.