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Roses popular, easy to grow in Oklahoma
Roses are one of the most popular plants in Oklahoma gardens, and many are relatively easy to grow, especially the newer varieties like the Knock Out® rose. Roses offer color and fragrance in the garden, and many make wonderful cut flowers. If you have a garden, you should try your hand at growing roses!.
03/22/2012 | Comments 0From ‘Long Black Limousine’ to Elvis
That would change years later. For the next seven years, band members came and went. Finally, Black put together a group of musicians that have been with him for more than 20 years. They include guitarist Graham Pugh, bass player Rick Alongi, drummer Bob Gorley and keyboard player Phil Sapper, formerly of Harvey and the Wallbangers.
03/01/2012 | Comments 0Young artist generates new ideas for veterans memorial expansion
“This will not be done with any public money,” said Howe, an Air Force pilot who flew B-52s during the Vietnam war. “Each statue will cost $40,000, but this type of art puts us in a different realm. It will take us into the world of art, which opens new avenues for giving.
02/23/2012 | Comments 0Fleck and Flecktones to perform April 10 at Rose State
The extraordinary initial line-up of his incredible combo are touring to support their latest recording, “Rocket Science.
02/17/2012 | Comments 0Real Life
In my presentation, I told the club members about the importance of supporting their local newspaper. After all, we received numerous compliments about our publication and its new appearance, content and local ownership. In this business, compliments can be few and far between, so we enjoyed all of the positive remarks.
02/17/2012 | Comments 0‘General’-ly speaking
In fact, every night when he goes home, the general’s hat comes off – if only temporarily – and suddenly the commander of one of the most critical U.S. Air Force bases turns into father, husband, scuba diver and avid fan of New England sports teams..
02/10/2012 | Comments 0Longtime MWC fire department spokesman Jerry Lojka retires
Lojka spent 29 years at the Midwest City Fire Department and served in several roles, including firefighter, inspector, investigator, public education officer, public information officer and fire marshal.
His favorite job was that of department spokesman as he answered questions from the press, and conveyed important fire prevention tips to the public.
Real Life: Lojka will be missed at fire department
This week’s retirement of Midwest City Fire Marshal Jerry Lojka reminded
me how an effective and well-intentioned PIO does his job. During the
past 14 months I’ve discovered that he knows his job and he understands
the role reporters play in the world of news and information.
02/03/2012 | Comments 0MWC grad, Hudson to receive national awards
Midwest City School graduate Lester Claravall will receive the prestigious Lewis Hines Award for Service to Children and Youth during a ceremony in New York City on Monday.
The award will be presented by the National Child Labor Committee, which serves as the sponsor for the Lewis Hines awards...
Images of 2012 MLK Prayer Breakfast
Several hundred people attended Midwest City’s 15th annual Martin
Luther King, Jr., Prayer Breakfast Monday at the Sheraton Hotel’s Reed
Conference Center. Featured speakers were former state legislator Angela
Monson, Oklahoma City police officer Paco Balderamma and Midwest City
graduate and current University of Oklahoma student Rodney Farrow.
01/19/2012 | Comments 0
October 22nd, 2010
Mid-Del Schools votes to hold special election in December
Voters in the Mid-Del School district will be asked to go to the polls Dec. 14 to vote on a $190.9 million bond package for repair, remodel and rebuilding of aging school facilities.
On Oct. 11, members of the Mid-Del Schools board of education approved a resolution authorizing a special election to permit the issuance of general obligation bonds.
Facing a $10 million shortfall from 2009, Mid-Del Schools Superintendent Bill Scoggan said the district is tightening its belt and bracing for the worst as it looks ahead to keep its facilities running, teachers employed, and children taught.
"Children are expensive," Scoggan said, noting the measure would not raise taxes. "High-quality education is expensive, but ignorance is far more costly."
The district receives 70 percent of its yearly operating budget from the state legislature, 20 percent from local property taxes and 10 percent from the federal government.
Federal stimulus money will dry up in June, and Scoggan is also facing a 9.1-percent cut in funds from the state to the district. On property tax collections, he said, Oklahoma County tax values have risen less than 1.5 percent in the last year, compared to an average of 4.25 percent just five years ago. That means less money for school districts.
Unlike a business, which can find creative ways to raise revenue, or institutions of higher education, which can raise tuition and fees, public school districts must make cuts in light of budget shortfalls. The one ray of hope, however, is bond issues to back loans for capital improvements.
Since staring down budget cuts, Scoggan and Mid-Del administrators have striven to keep their teachers working and preserving programs for the district's children. In light of gloomier days ahead, the new bond initiative would pay for the demolition or remodel of some schools as well as consolidation and elimination of some of the district's oldest buildings.
AGING FACILITIES
Stacey Boyer, director of community relations for the district, said if the bond is approved, the district would close four elementary schools and two middle schools. This would take the number of schools from 26 to 20 in time for the 2013-2014 academic year. The average age of school buildings in the district is 57 years old.
The schools that would close are Highland Park Elementary, Sooner Rose Elementary, Steed Elementary, Traub Elementary, Kerr Middle School and Jarman Middle School. Four new buildings would be constructed on existing land of Townsend Elementary, East Side Elementary, Country Estates Elementary and Solider Creek Elementary. Boyer said it would be a seamless transition for students at those institutions.
With the closing of Kerr and Jarman, students will attend either Del Crest Middle School or Monroney Middle School in expanded buildings. They will feed into Del City High School and Midwest City High School, respectively. It would bring the total number of middle schools in the district to three, one to feed into each high school. Carl Albert Middle School students already feed into Carl Albert High School.
KIND CITIZENS
For the past three school bond elections, voters have been kind to the district, according to Doug Sanderson, secretary of the Oklahoma County Election Board.
On Dec. 13, 2005, voters in the district approved an $11.125 million school bond issue by 67.87 percent. A May 8, 2007, school bond election for $17.5 million passed with 83.13 percent of the vote. The most recent bond measure, for $23.82 million, passed on April 7, 2009, with 78.93 percent.
Scoggan plans to hit the streets in the coming weeks to convince voters to approve the largest general obligation bond in the district's history. If approved, it will continue taxes already in place from the current bond set to retire in 2014.
This time around, the measure would involve lease revenue bonds and general obligation bonds. Scoggan said by combing those two, it would enable the district to generate large sums of capital improvement money from future projected property taxes without increasing those taxes.
THE QUESTION
"Shall Independent School District Number 52 of Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, incur an indebtedness by issuing its bonds in the sum of one hundred ninety million nine hundred and twenty thousand dollars($190,920,000) to be issued in series to provide funds for the purpose of improving or acquiring school sites, constructing, repairing, remodeling and equipping school buildings, and acquiring school furniture, fixtures, and equipment; and levy and collect and annual tax, in addition to all other taxes, upon all the taxable property in such District sufficient to pay the interest on such bonds as it falls due and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof when due, said bonds to bear interest not to exceed the rate of ten (10%) percentum per annum, payable semiannually and to become due serially within five (5) years from their date?"
The bond election is Dec. 14.
photo Townsend Elementary School would be rebuilt on the same site if the question passes. Photo/Mark Hancock
On Oct. 11, members of the Mid-Del Schools board of education approved a resolution authorizing a special election to permit the issuance of general obligation bonds.
Facing a $10 million shortfall from 2009, Mid-Del Schools Superintendent Bill Scoggan said the district is tightening its belt and bracing for the worst as it looks ahead to keep its facilities running, teachers employed, and children taught.
"Children are expensive," Scoggan said, noting the measure would not raise taxes. "High-quality education is expensive, but ignorance is far more costly."
The district receives 70 percent of its yearly operating budget from the state legislature, 20 percent from local property taxes and 10 percent from the federal government.
Federal stimulus money will dry up in June, and Scoggan is also facing a 9.1-percent cut in funds from the state to the district. On property tax collections, he said, Oklahoma County tax values have risen less than 1.5 percent in the last year, compared to an average of 4.25 percent just five years ago. That means less money for school districts.
Unlike a business, which can find creative ways to raise revenue, or institutions of higher education, which can raise tuition and fees, public school districts must make cuts in light of budget shortfalls. The one ray of hope, however, is bond issues to back loans for capital improvements.
Since staring down budget cuts, Scoggan and Mid-Del administrators have striven to keep their teachers working and preserving programs for the district's children. In light of gloomier days ahead, the new bond initiative would pay for the demolition or remodel of some schools as well as consolidation and elimination of some of the district's oldest buildings.
AGING FACILITIES
Stacey Boyer, director of community relations for the district, said if the bond is approved, the district would close four elementary schools and two middle schools. This would take the number of schools from 26 to 20 in time for the 2013-2014 academic year. The average age of school buildings in the district is 57 years old.
The schools that would close are Highland Park Elementary, Sooner Rose Elementary, Steed Elementary, Traub Elementary, Kerr Middle School and Jarman Middle School. Four new buildings would be constructed on existing land of Townsend Elementary, East Side Elementary, Country Estates Elementary and Solider Creek Elementary. Boyer said it would be a seamless transition for students at those institutions.
With the closing of Kerr and Jarman, students will attend either Del Crest Middle School or Monroney Middle School in expanded buildings. They will feed into Del City High School and Midwest City High School, respectively. It would bring the total number of middle schools in the district to three, one to feed into each high school. Carl Albert Middle School students already feed into Carl Albert High School.
KIND CITIZENS
For the past three school bond elections, voters have been kind to the district, according to Doug Sanderson, secretary of the Oklahoma County Election Board.
On Dec. 13, 2005, voters in the district approved an $11.125 million school bond issue by 67.87 percent. A May 8, 2007, school bond election for $17.5 million passed with 83.13 percent of the vote. The most recent bond measure, for $23.82 million, passed on April 7, 2009, with 78.93 percent.
Scoggan plans to hit the streets in the coming weeks to convince voters to approve the largest general obligation bond in the district's history. If approved, it will continue taxes already in place from the current bond set to retire in 2014.
This time around, the measure would involve lease revenue bonds and general obligation bonds. Scoggan said by combing those two, it would enable the district to generate large sums of capital improvement money from future projected property taxes without increasing those taxes.
THE QUESTION
"Shall Independent School District Number 52 of Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, incur an indebtedness by issuing its bonds in the sum of one hundred ninety million nine hundred and twenty thousand dollars($190,920,000) to be issued in series to provide funds for the purpose of improving or acquiring school sites, constructing, repairing, remodeling and equipping school buildings, and acquiring school furniture, fixtures, and equipment; and levy and collect and annual tax, in addition to all other taxes, upon all the taxable property in such District sufficient to pay the interest on such bonds as it falls due and also to constitute a sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof when due, said bonds to bear interest not to exceed the rate of ten (10%) percentum per annum, payable semiannually and to become due serially within five (5) years from their date?"
The bond election is Dec. 14.
photo Townsend Elementary School would be rebuilt on the same site if the question passes. Photo/Mark Hancock
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