In a little more than a week, the community will determine the direction of the district’s long-term facility plan for its 38,000 students. Get informed and vote!

For information on how the Fit for the Future plan will impact each of the district’s five cluster areas, check out these websites: Andover, Anoka, Blaine, Champlin Park, and Coon Rapids.

What if the referendum isn’t approved? Essentially, schools will continue to age without the space or resources demanded by learners. More details are at ahschools.us/Consequences.

Voting: from now until election day

Minnesota makes voting easy with a variety of ways to vote – on or before election day. First, check to see if you’re registered to vote by going to ahschools.us/CheckRegistration. Keep in mind, you must re-register to vote if your address or name changes, or if you have not voted at least once during a four-year period. If you need to re-register details can be found ahschools.us/Register.

From now until Nov. 6, you can vote early without a special reason. Voters residing in Anoka and Hennepin counties (yes, Anoka County is processing Hennepin County voting) can vote early via mail by submitting an application, which is available at ahschools.us/VoteEarly or any Anoka-Hennepin school. Once the county receives your early voting application, a mail-in ballot will be sent to your home.

Voters residing in Anoka and Hennepin counties who would like to vote early in person can do so at the Anoka County Elections office, located at 325 E Main St., Anoka, Minn. Hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 4 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and Monday, Nov. 6 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Otherwise, voters can cast their ballots on election day, Tuesday, Nov. 7, at their assigned polling place. Go to ahschools.us/PollFinder to find your site.

More voting information is available at ahschools.us/VotingInfo. Here’s a quick summary as well:  

• Check your voter status online.
• Register to vote online, by mail or in person.
• Vote early by mail or in person, from now until Nov. 6.
• Find election day, Nov. 7, polling locations.

What do all these election terms mean?

So what exactly is a referendum? A referendum is the act of a legislative body proposing one or more ballot measures, known as questions, to voters. Why is a vote needed? By law, school districts need to ask the community for additional funding or money to build with, so they hold referendum elections to do so. In the Anoka-Hennepin referendum, the School Board is asking voters to respond to two funding questions.

So how about operating levies and bonds – what do these mean? Generally speaking, levies are for learning and bonds are for buildings. With a levy, a set dollar amount is divided among all property taxpayers annually (determined by property values). The funds are used for any operational purpose that has to do with learning, such as computers or other technology, curriculum, teacher salaries, and overhead costs like utility bills. Levy funds cannot be used for such things as constructing additions on a school, or renovating a school cafeteria. Bonds, meanwhile, are financed through the selling of just that – bonds. The principal and interest of these bonds are paid back over a period of time. A bond can only be used for construction or renovation of school buildings or facilities, and can’t be used for operational purposes like a levy can.

In Anoka-Hennepin’s case, on this year’s ballot, an operating levy is being proposed in question one, and a bond in question two. Question one, the operating levy, will provide funds to run new spaces and help address class size districtwide. Voters will be asked to pay $226.20 per pupil, or approximately $95 million over 10 years. Question two, the bond, will fund additions at all five traditional high schools, Anoka Middle School for the Arts, Champlin-Brooklyn Park Academy/Jackson Middle School, River Trail Learning Center at L.O. Jacob, and two newly proposed elementary schools. In addition, with bond funds, all district schools will receive some type of building improvement, whether it be updated science labs, media centers, or flexible learning areas. Voters will be asked to pay a total of $249 million, to be paid back over 25 years.

For your property’s specific figures, go to ahschools.us/TaxImpact, and click on the tax calculator link.

More information

For more information on the Fit for the Future referendum, including particulars on the finance plan and answers to frequently asked questions, visit ahschools.us/FitForTheFuture. Questions? Email FitForTheFuture@ahschools.us or call 763-506-3383.