The Dexter Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Safety highlights May bond proposal
By Evelynn Shirk
PUBLISHED: April 10, 2008
The Dexter Board of Education believes that the best approach to safety is good planning and prevention, therefore, $7.7 million of the proposed $47,890,000 bond is earmarked for safety and security measures.
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Included in the security measures are a pedestrian path and crosswalk so that students can safely walk between Dexter High School and Creekside Intermediate School and not compete with traffic on Shield Road.
District plans also include separating pedestrian, parent and bus traffic whenever possible. A road for bus traffic only will be constructed behind Wylie with access to Kensington Street and Dan Hoey Road through the parking lot by the Cornerstone portables. This road will not interfere with any of the existing Mill Creek baseball fields, but will increase the safety of students as they enter and exit the buses from the back of Wylie and Cornerstone.
Improvements to other areas in which buses pick up students and drop them off will also be made.
Security technologies are not the answer to all school security problems; however, cameras, sensor entry control technologies and improved site lighting can be excellent tools to help safeguard the learning environment. Video cameras provide a deterrence factor which enhances campus security.
The surveillance system currently in use at Dexter High School will be upgraded.
Plans also call for each school to be monitored with a keyless entry system. An ID card or badge will be designed to electronically open an exterior door lock andrecord the date, time and identity of the person entering the building. Validation of a card can be turned off if the card is lost, stolen or misused.
All exterior doors will also be monitored with a door sensing system so that each building can be secured electronically.
All 2008 bond projects can be completed with no increase to the current 8.5 mills tax levy.
When voters approved the last bond issue in 1998, the projection was that 8.5 mills would be levied for debt on all properties until 2031. Due to community growth and effective debt management, the current projection is that the debt levy will start to decline in 2013.
A positive vote on May 6 will delay this decline by approximately five years. The District's total bond indebtedness is projected for pay off in 2029.
Complete information about bond projects can be found on the District's Web site at www.dexter.k12.mi.us or by visiting the Superintendent's Office in the Copeland Administration Building.
Representatives from the District will be happy to conduct group presentations about the bond. To arrange for such a presentation, call 424-4100 (ext. 1002).
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