Mahomet-Seymour School District Proposes $112 Million Bond for New Schools

On November 5, the Mahomet-Seymour School District will seek voter approval for a $112 million bond referendum to fund the construction of a new junior high school at the current MSJHS site and a new second and third-grade building south of Middletown Prairie but north of South Mahomet Road.

This marks the district’s third attempt to pass a referendum for facility expansion, following two previous unsuccessful efforts. The latest proposal comes after a $97.9 million referendum was rejected on June 28, 2022. That proposal included plans for a junior high, bus barn, and potential additions at Middletown Prairie, Lincoln Trail, and Mahomet-Seymour High School, which would have featured classrooms, athletic field updates, and creative spaces such as new specials classrooms and a high school auditorium.

A second referendum, seeking $59.4 million to build a new junior high school on more than 30 acres south of Middletown Prairie Elementary, failed on November 8, 2022. The district initially proposed a building for grades 6-8 that would accommodate 900 to 1,000 students, but adjusted the capacity to 1,100 to 1,200 students after this publication showed readers the enrollment at the junior high in Oct. 2022 was 813 students. 

In early August, the district was asked by this publication for details on the number of classrooms and square footage planned for the new elementary and junior high schools, should the referendum pass. The district responded on August 15, via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, stating, “At this time, there is no final determination nor final responsive records for this request.”

On August 15, the district released the agenda for the August 19 board meeting, revealing that the proposed junior high would be approximately 140,000 square feet, supporting 900 students, while the elementary school would be around 75,000 square feet, supporting 600 students. These figures suggest planning for about 300 students per grade level.

Current enrollment at Mahomet-Seymour Junior High School stands at 820 students, with 533 students enrolled in second and third grades.

Additional enrollment data, provided by the district on August 26 via FOIA, includes:

• Kindergarten: 228
• 1st Grade: 236
• 2nd Grade: 266
• 3rd Grade: 267
• 4th Grade: 271
• 5th Grade: 291
• 6th Grade: 276
• 7th Grade: 267
• 8th Grade: 277
• 9th Grade: 264
• 10th Grade: 288
• 11th Grade: 239
• 12th Grade: 269

Total district enrollment, including Pre-K, is currently 3,519 students, up from 3,429 in the 2023-24 school year.

If the referendum is approved, property owners can expect an increase in property taxes for the next 20 years. The district estimates this would add $22 per month per $100,000 in home market value. Data provided during the presentation at the most recent Village/School Board joint meeting showed the district’s tax rate increasing from 4.63 percent to an estimated 5.92 percent should the referendum pass. 

Recently, Mahomet-Seymour constituents observed an increase in property taxes following the finalization of 2023 property values. According to the Champaign County Property Tax Division, the district will receive approximately $2.6 million more in property tax revenue this year, including revenue from the East Mahomet TIF residential pass-through, compared to the previous fiscal year.

The district’s decision to pursue a new elementary school and junior high followed a summer of reviewing potential plans with a facility committee and conducting surveys. However, when asked for the raw survey data, the district stated that it did not possess it, as the survey was conducted by an outside source affiliated with BLDD Architects, the district’s architect of record. According to Creative Entourage, a marketing firm assisting the district, the weighted survey data showed that participants favored the $112 million referendum over other proposals, which ranged from $109 million to $116 million.

This publication will continue to seek answers to outstanding questions through ongoing FOIA requests and by disputing responses with the Illinois Attorney General’s office. Further information on prospective residential developments, survey and committee data, TIF district analysis, sales tax data, and enrollment figures will be published in the coming weeks.