From Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE – A day after Trussville voters rejected a proposed ad valorem tax increase, Trussville City Schools officials considered alternative options to meet their most pressing facility needs.
The proposed property tax increase would have added a third wing to Hewitt-Trussville High School, which is already at 106% capacity. In addition, the plan would have included a new elementary school to reduce the number of students at Paine Elementary, which is now the largest elementary school in Alabama. The plan would also have included special education classes and a new cafeteria at Hewitt-Trussville Middle School, where about half of the students eat in classrooms and lunch starts as early as 10 a.m.
Dr. Martin speaks about the property tax vote during the TCS school board meeting on Monday.
“Yesterday, the citizens of Trussville voted against the proposed plan to provide additional infrastructure for our school system,” said Superintendent Dr. Patrick Martin. “On behalf of the Trussville City Schools Board of Education, I want to express my sincere gratitude to the many people in our community who have dedicated their time, energy and effort to support our goal of providing the very best for all of our students in the Trussville City Schools.”
Martin and Trussville Mayor Buddy Choat have spent the past few months meeting with civic groups across the city and holding several town hall meetings to discuss the financial details of the plan and answer citizens’ questions directly. Some of the town hall meetings were live-streamed by the Tribune.
“I am grateful to our citizens for attending one of the education meetings over the past few months and carefully reviewing the proposed plan,” Martin said. “With that in mind, we will now begin determining our next steps to best meet the needs of our students. Trussville City Schools remains committed to its mission of delivering excellence in academics, athletics and the arts every day.”
Martin did not name any specific options that TCS board members might consider. However, previous discussions have included redistricting elementary schools, which could provide very little relief but is not seen as a long-term solution due to TCS’s increasing enrollment numbers each year. Other options could include considering portable classrooms at HTHS, which is already exceeding its capacity, and at the elementary schools.
The high school was recently ranked the 8th best school in Alabama by U.S. News and World Report. Based on state test scores, Cahaba, Magnolia and Paine elementary schools are among the top 20 elementary schools in the state.
