ROYAL CITY - The Royal School District Board of Directors will formally decide whether to run a school construction bond in February's special election and is expected to do so.

The decision will be made at the regular board meeting on Monday, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. at the Royal High School Library. It will be open to the public.

The Board needs to pass a resolution that outlines the amount represented by the bonds to be sold and how that money is intended to be used.

"The resolution language is important not only because that is what people see on their ballot, but also because it holds the district accountable to spend the tax dollars as they promised they would," district business manager David Andra said.

After the technical language of the bond resolution is worked out, it must be filed with the Grant County Auditor's office by December 28.

The bond sale is for the purpose of raising $14.25 million for construction of an intermediate school and an addition to the high school.

According to Andra, the district expects $4.4 million in state matching funds if the voters approve a bond sale. The state match, combined with the district's contribution of $1.1 million, leaves $8.75 million needed from the sale of bonds.

According to Andra, the extra space would alleviate crowded hallways and cafeterias in all of the buildings and eliminate the need to add more portables as the district's student enrollment continues to grow.

"If you aren't registered to vote yet, it's not too late," Andra said. "You can still register until Jan. 14 by mail or online and by Feb. 4 in person."

The ballots will be mailed out on Jan. 25 and must be returned by Feb. 12 to be valid.

Andra noted that, if the voters approve the bond sale, the district will run an advertisement giving locals the opportunity to purchase the bonds.

"Because of the excellent credit rating we expect to receive and the current bond market, it isn't necessarily a great investment, but it is very safe," Andra said. "Of course, those low interest rates help the tax rate of the property owners to be at the projected $1.19 per $1000 of property valuation."