School Board Refinances Bond Issue For Savings

PRAIRIE GROVE — Prairie Grove School Board approved a resolution Oct. 19 to issue $9.3 million in bonds that will save about $650,000 in interest costs over the life of the issue.

Board members gave their OK in September to seek approval to refinance a $ 9.4 million bond with a current interest rate of 4.13 percent.

The interest rate for the new bond issue will be 3.15 percent, according to Allen Williams, superintendent of schools.

The district would save most of its money, an estimated $585,000, in the first two years of the new bond issue. All savings will go in the district’s building fund, either for new construction, facilities’ maintenance or facilities’ improvements.

Williams said the savings will not be dedicated to any projects in particular.

“With the interest rates, we had the opportunity to save that money and put it into our building fund,” Williams said last week.

In other action, the board voted Eric Walker as president for the 2015-16 school year. William Dick will serve as vice president and Bart Orr was re- elected board secretary.

Williams handed out a document that shows projected student growth for Prairie Grove schools and said he believes the numbers are skewed somewhat.

The formula shows that Prairie Grove schools will lose students in the next 10 years, from an estimated 1,882 students in year 2016-17 to 1,742 students in 2025-26, a loss of 1.8 percent.

The unpredictable number in student population, Williams said, is the number of students in kindergarten. Two years ago, Prairie Grove had 140 students in kindergarten. This dropped to 131 the next year and is smaller this year.

The formula predicts Prairie Grove student enrollment will go down based on those kindergarten numbers.

Williams pointed out new houses continue to be built in Prairie Grove and he believes student population will go up.

Subdivisions in Prairie Grove have seen an increased number of new housing starts in 2014 and even more in 2015, according to city officials. In 2014, the city issued 63 permits for new single family residences. Through Oct. 22, the city has issued 72 permits for single family residences.

“I don’t see that (decreased enrollment) happening with the building that is going on out here,” Williams said. “It says we would lose 100 kids over the next 10 years and I’ll be absolutely shocked if it plays out that way.”