PERRYSBURG – Voting under a cloud of concern, the Perrysburg Board of Education decided unanimously
Monday to place an emergency replacement operating levy on the November ballot.
"This is our shot at securing an educational system in Perrysburg that works well, works
efficiently, and takes into consideration a wide variety of interests and priorities," said Board
President Barry Van Hoozen.
If approved, the levy will collect 13.14 mills, or about $10 million, in the first year, increasing by
1.28 mills, or $975,000, in each of the remaining three years. By the end of the levy in 2016, the rate
would be 16.98 mills, or about $13 million. About $46 million will be collected in total during the
levy’s four years.
On a $200,000 home, this means a cost increase to current property taxes of about $26 per month each
year. Superintendent Tom Hosler likened this to the price of a family pizza night.
The current levy, voted into place in 2008, collects 9.95 mills, or $7.6 million.
The atmosphere at Monday’s meeting was uncharacteristically somber as the board and Hosler discussed the
levy. Two choices were initially placed before board members to consider, with the administration
favoring the second, slightly more conservative, option, which was ultimately chosen.
Hosler, though noting he did not wish to scare residents, painted a somewhat discomfiting picture of the
consequences if the levy should fail.
"If the levy fails, we will have higher class sizes," he said, going on to say "we will
have fewer offerings, we will have a reduction in faculty and staff."
"We’ll have fewer extracurriculars, I think we’ll lose a little bit of the esteem" the city has
as a community.
"People begin to leave, students begin to leave," he said. "You begin that downward
spiral."
Determining the form and amount of the levy was a months-long, painstaking process for the
administration, and statements made by board members prior to the vote reflected this. Walter Edinger
noted his concern that the amount asked for in the levy would prove too little for the district, while
Mark Schoenlein worried that the size of the millage increase might be too much and not accurately
reflect the districts needs.
At the end of fiscal year 2016, the district would have a $500,000 carryover in its general fund, little
more than half the amount needed to cover a single bimonthly pay period, said District Treasurer and CFO
Matt Feasel. A $3.2 million carryover is optimal.
In his presentation to the board, Hosler noted that the next step will be promoting the levy and getting
the word out to the public by a variety of means.
"No one wants to hear about raising their taxes," he said. However, "I think with this
particular levy, with this replacement levy, I think we can continue to be that point of pride for this
community."