Royalton Will Vote
On New School Gym

The citizens of Royalton will vote next Tuesday, Sept. 11 on a proposal for a bond issue of $3.880,000 for a new gymnasium and other improvements to the South Royalton School.

The school board and a special building committee chaired by Jim Hewitt strongly support the project. They believe that this proposal—more modest than earlier gymnasium proposals—will solve serious space and safety problems at the K-12 school while placing the school in the new world of competition for students.

The plan was first brought before the public April 19 in a hearing hosted by the building committee.

The new gymnasium would be equipped with a divider allowing it to be used as two smaller gyms. In addition, a new entrance way and redesigned parking will fix what is said to be a dangerous drop-off situation in a constricted space. The new lobby will provide a more inviting entrance to the school and its events.

The cost would be paid through a 20-year bond, which would increase the tax rate by an estimated 16.9 cents, equaling a $169 increase for a $100,000 homestead.

The school board points out, however, that due to the "income sensitivity" provision of Act 68, most families in Royalton would not pay the full increase in new taxes on their homesteads. Families that make under $49,000 a year would likely pay no additional taxes for this project.

The school board believes the project is necessary because the existing gym is seriously deficient—and indeed this is only the latest of several proposal to remedy that. The current gym space is also the subject of competition for space, serving sometimes as a cafeteria, practice floor, and a collecting place for students.

Both proponents and opponents of the gymnasium project have made much of the fact that enrollments are declining slightly, which is true in other area schools as well.

Opponents say that if enrollments are shrinking, there should be no need for more space. Proponents of the new gym note that the decline in enrollments means that schools are more than ever actively competing with each other for students.

South Royalton High School hopes to continue to attract students from area towns that don’t have their own high schools—including Tunbridge, Sharon, and Stockbridge. In this competition, the school board believes, Royalton will be helped by having a modern facility that parents will choose.

A more modern school may even change the course of future merger conversations with other schools, the board believes, making it more likely that the South Royalton School will keep operating.

Polls are open Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2007 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Absentee ballots may be cast at the town clerk’s office.