2017 In Review: Bond issue passes

One of the biggest events of the year took place on June 27.

That’s when the Red Oak community took to the polls to decide the fate of a $19.9 million bond issue to renovate the Red Oak High School and Inman Primary in an effort to shrink the district to two campuses.

Throughout 2016, the district, as well as architect Daric O’Neal with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architects and Mark Pfister with Boyd Jones held numerous community meetings outlining potential scenarios, ranging from eliminating no buildings to reducing the number to two. After the meetings, and much discussion, the board approved sending the $19.9 million bond issue, keeping the high school, Inman Primary, and Washington Intermediate in play, to the polls.

The district had already made numerous staffing cuts, and if the bond issue failed, more, tougher cuts were going to take place. When the polls closed June 27, 76.9 percent of those who voted were in favor of the bond issue, well past the 60 percent supermajority needed for the bond issue to pass.

Superintendent Tom Messinger said it was the efforts of the Heroes 17 committee that allowed the bond issue to pass by such a wide margin.

“There was no way we could have hit that mark without the Heroes 17 group. The social media blitz they had, their work on the signs and getting the word out were major factors. It was a diverse group of members from all walks of life and age groups. They worked hard to get things organized and had a strong grasp on the information that needed to go out there. They really did a great job with it,” Messinger said.

In the wake of the election, the Red Oak School Board has been working to finalize project details. Work on the renovations is expected to begin at the end of the school year.

A building project on a much smaller scale was also approved this year. On April 17, the Red Oak City Council approved the construction of a new EMA building next to the Red Oak Fire Station, moving Montgomery County EMA coordinator Brian Hamman’s offices from Highland Annex.

The estimated cost of the building and site work totaled $597,200. The EMA’s portion of the costs were $449,925 and the city’s portion was $147,275. The city shared a portion of the cost as part of the new building will be used to house surplus equipment of the Red Oak Fire Department. The building project is expected to be completed later this month.

Also in 2017, the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors approved a new HVAC project at the Montgomery County Courthouse, replacing the boiler system, which was well past its lifespan and was leaking water beneath the basement floors of te courthouse. The project was finished in October.

Also, the Red Oak City Council approved the demolition of the former Montgomery County Memorial Hospital building at 5th and Washington Streets in February. Asbestos abatement was tackled first, with the demolition of the building expected afterward.