ISD 166 reviews facility design plans, prepares public survey for 2025 referendum
The ISD 166 School Board reviewed schematic designs for the facility and ground improvements during the March 20 meeting.
ISD 166 is working with ICS, a project management firm, and DSGW, an architectural firm, to implement the facility and ground improvements approved by Cook County voters during the November 2024 referendum. The upgrades include a $24 million investment to construct a secured entrance, a new single-court gymnasium, a physical education addition, a classroom, special education, and common area improvements.
Superintendent Chris Lindholm said the schematic designs are a “rough look at what user groups have provided input on” so far. The documents and designs will continue to be tweaked as consultants and contractors begin finalizing the plans and selecting materials.
Then, Lindholm said, the school board would have a better idea of the overall cost of the identified school improvements and would choose which ones to begin moving forward with. “That process will take probably through mid-June.”
“Over the next several months, we will really start dialing in on the granular work of design,” Lindholm said. “It’s a fun process because it’s the part where we really do engage the community and the users of the facility.”
After finalizing plans, Lindholm said the school will put the project out for bidding in late September or early November.
Illustrations of the schematic designs presented in the March 20 board packet are below:
As ISD 166 moves forward with the design process of the school district and plans for construction to begin in 2026, the school district is exploring alternative funding sources to help cover the cost of the improvements. Last month, Lindholm told WTIP he was able to secure a $7 million match from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation (IRRR) contingent on Cook County Schools passing a November 2025 referendum.
On Friday, March 21, Lindholm met with Senator Grant Hauschild and Minnesota House Representative District 3A Roger Skraba in Grand Marais to discuss SF 1617. The proposed bill would allow ISD 166 a refundable sales and use tax exemption for construction materials for the various ongoing improvement projects.
“If that passes, that would be an additional $600,000 in sales tax reimbursement that would apply back into the bond project,” Lindholm said.
Another alternative funding source the school district is exploring is a $250,000 grant from the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR). Lindholm said the funding would be allocated to an outdoor learning area and a school forest enhancement.
“I think we would be lucky to get them all, but hopefully, we get some or most of them. And that would reduce the price tag from $11 million down to a much smaller number,” Lindholm said.
The IRRR funding is contingent on passing a November 2025 referendum. In recent meetings, the school board has discussed how to move forward with re-engaging with the public and collecting input about the possibility.
The November 2025 referendum would generally include the components of Question Two and Question Three, which Cook County voters did not approve in the November 2024 referendum.
In February, the school launched a survey for staff and parents to gauge interest in revisiting Questions Two and Three. Lindholm said there were 213 respondents to the survey, of which 75% were parents, and 25% were employees. There was a 12% overlap of parents who are also employees.
The data shows that 91% of the survey respondents voted in the November 2024 bond referendum. Of those, 58% said they voted in favor of Questions Two and Three. The participants who voted ‘no’ to Questions Two and Three cited poor prioritization, the tax impact being too high, the district doing too much at once, or selected ‘other’ as their reasoning.
With the emerging IRRR funding opportunity, the survey asked participants if they would support a new referendum to fund improvements for the school. 70% of respondents said yes, 16% said no, and 14% wanted more information.
The survey participants were asked to rank the improvement priorities from one to five, which include a new outdoor running track, synthetic turf, auditorium improvements, additional gym, baseball field improvements, and more. The results stated that support is relatively tepid among key audiences as none of the listed improvements received a score higher than four.
Given the overall 70% support from staff and parents for exploring a new referendum in November, the school district has decided to move forward with a survey to gauge interest from the larger community.
“The board had a robust discussion about the data,” Lindholm said. “What they want now is more meaningful data from the whole community. Not just parents and students and staff.”
Next month, the school district will release a second survey for the larger Cook County community.
Find the survey results for the staff and parents here.
WTIP’s Kalli Hawkins spoke with Superintendent Chris Lindholm about the ongoing facility and grounds design process, finding alternative funding sources, legislative priorities, and federal funding uncertainties. The audio from the interview is below.
Kalli Hawkins March 26, 2025
