Referendum 2020 Archive

On April 7, 2020, voters in the Mequon-Thiensville School District approved a $55.7 million referendum to address facility needs across the Mequon-Thiensville School District. The measure was approved by a margin of 58% yes to 42% no.

“This bold step forward by our community will serve our school district and all residents well into the future,” said MTSD Superintendent of Schools Matthew Joynt, Ph.D. “We are pleased to add to the vitality of our community through our strong public schools. The engagement throughout this process reaffirms our community’s support and desire to grow with us.”

The district will now begin developing plans and timelines for construction projects. Because construction will touch every building and program in some way, projects will be phased to cause as little disruption to students as possible.

Read the full press release.

An 18-month planning process

In an ever-changing environment, it is important to monitor all aspects of our educational program, including physical environments.

We began a process to thoroughly assess facilities and learning environments in fall 2018 in order to develop a long-range plan for facilities. Environments were analyzed for their capacity to support projected enrollment growth; provide flexible, safe and secure environments; support community recreation and athletic usage; and manage ongoing infrastructure maintenance needs.

The school district partnered with Eppstein Uhen Architects to help facilitate the development of this all-encompassing 10-year framework that aligns the organization’s current reality, impending forecasts, strategic direction, and the community’s priorities.

The plan serves as a long-range framework aligning the organization’s current reality, impending forecasts, strategic direction, and the community’s priorities.

Facility Needs Addressed

What has been accomplished since the vote?

After the referendum passed in April, planning and development of a timeline for construction projects began in partnership with Eppstein Uhen Architects (EUA) and Hunzinger Construction Company. Following the April 7 vote, MTSD and its partners have completed the following:

Schematic Design - MTSD, EUA, and Hunzinger Construction Company reviewed and formalized project requirements and goals.
Traffic Studies - Traffic Analysis and Design, Inc. (TADI) visited elementary and middle school sites to re-analyze traffic flow due to this year’s adjusted procedures for parent pick-up and drop-off. Reconfiguration of traffic circulation and parking lot queuing will occur at different stages with each school.

Much progress has been made on design and construction planning at each site, and Hunzinger Construction Company broke ground at our elementary and middle schools in early April 2021.

Click here to view the progress by school

Information and Reports Archive

Referendum Background Information

On Monday, January 27, 2020, the Mequon-Thiensville School District Board of Education voted unanimously to place a referendum question on the ballot for Tuesday, April 7, 2020.

The board approved the measure after reviewing an administrative recommendation that was informed by several components, including the development of a long-range master plan for facilities, the work of a Community Task Force and the results of a community-wide survey.

The question on the ballot asked residents of Mequon and Thiensville to approve $55.7 million in general obligation bonds to address capacity concerns due to enrollment growth by funding additions and renovated spaces, as well as enhancing district-wide safety and security.

Enrollment Studies & Facility Needs

Enrollment Studies

Monitoring student enrollment and estimating future enrollment trends are essential to school planning, and a critical piece in developing a long-range plan. The long-range master plan was informed by enrollment projections by the Applied Population Lab (APL) and MDRoffers Consulting. Historical enrollment data, birth trends, the local housing market, residential development and demographic trends impacting enrollment were studied in order to provide enrollment projections for the next 10 years.

In general, the enrollment projections indicate that enrollment will remain consistent at the middle school and high school levels while significant enrollment growth is projected at the elementary level in the coming years.

Enrollment growth is a good thing for public school districts, where state-level funding is tied to enrollment. The challenge is that each of the district’s elementary schools is currently operating near or over its ideal capacity. The studies referenced above, the most recent of which was conducted in 2019, predict that enrollment will increase by more than 350 students in the next 10 years. Most of this growth is expected at the elementary level. The district has inadequate classroom and core learning space to accommodate these students.

Report Findings

Download a PDF of the 2019 enrollment study report to the board from August 5, 2019, or watch Mark Roffers of MDRoffers Consulting present the findings to the board by watching the video below.

Growth & Capacity

Create additions and renovations at three elementary schools to increase space available for core classrooms, art, physical education, music, and special education
Expand cafeterias at the elementary and middle schools
Renovate targeted spaces at the middle schools including music and specialist classrooms to support current needs

Safety & Security

Improve traffic circulation and parking lot queuing space at all schools
Make restrooms and playgrounds more accessible for those with mobility impairments
Create a more identifiable main entrance at Homestead High School and make district-wide improvements to control visitor access
Connect to municipal water and enhance fire suppression and alarm systems at the elementary and middle schools

Learn more about the safety & security measures already in place in our schools.

Community Task Force

The MTSD Board of Education approved the Long Range Master Plan: A Framework for Our Future on July 22, 2019. A Community Task Force was launched to review and consider facility challenges, establish priorities, and make recommendations to the administration and board regarding facilities issues. The task force was an independent entity comprised of voices and perspectives from across our school district community.

The initiation of a task force was the next step in the district's long-range facilities planning process, which began in 2018. The process included a study of population and enrollment in the development of an all-encompassing 10-year framework. The study projects enrollment will continue to increase at the elementary level over the next 5-10 years.

The long-range master plan identified several challenges, including projections that point to inadequate classroom space to meet expected growth at the elementary level. Outdated classroom configurations at all schools are not conducive to modern student-centered learning approaches. Site circulation and traffic flow present challenges at all campuses.

The task force met in fall 2019 to engage in their review and work to develop recommendations and provided its final report to the MTSD Board of Education on November 18, 2019, outlining a series of priorities and recommendations on the district’s facility needs. Task Force Co-Chairs Stephanie Clark and Peter Stone presented the report.

The principal recommendations indicate that the district should take action to address overcapacity at its elementary schools and scheduling capacity issues at its middle schools; improve accessibility for those with mobility impairments; improve traffic safety at all campuses; and pursue updates to outdated instructional environments.

Read the report and recommendations of the task force.
Printable PDF

The opinions and recommendations of the task force are not binding and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of the board of education, of any individual school board member or of the superintendent and MTSD staff.

Community Survey

Following the work of the task force, Mequon-Thiensville School District stakeholders were asked to review the district’s facility needs, consider possible solutions, and provide input and feedback via a survey. The anonymous survey was open from November 19 through December 4, 2019.

Information from the survey was used by district leaders and the Board of Education to examine solutions that meet district needs, are financially responsible, and move the community forward.

Tax Impact & Project Scope

Estimated property tax impact of $55.7 million based on a total mill rate increase of $0.30 per $1,000 of equalized property value.* This represents an increase over current tax payments for debt.