Voters tour school, ask questions

This article (and the photographs) was written by Montezuma resident Keith Brake and can be found at http://www.clownsiniowa.com/:

With stains above and below, the high school library isn't
a most attractive room.
Voters tour school, ask questions

July 22, 2010
There was and is a concern about costs.

There were some questions about how the Montezuma Community Schools building got into the condition it is today.

"But the consensus seemed to be, 'yes, we need to do it,'" said schools superintendent Dave Versteeg Wednesday night at a meeting of the Support Montezuma Campaign.

The meeting came at the conclusion of two hours of tours of the buildings conducted by Versteeg and junior high/high school principal Brian Moretz. An estimated 55 people went on the tours.

The school is asking voters to approve $11.5 million in general obligation bonds on Sept. 14 to do extensive remodeling of the building.

There were some rumors circulating - one was that the geo-thermal plan to heat and cool the building would be 50 percent of the cost. (It's closer to 10 percent).

There were questions as to why the building needed to be air conditioned.

There were questions about why the junior high's upstairs hallway needed to be made straight.

School officials didn't duck any questions. If they didn't know an answer, they asked someone in their group to write down the question and promised to get back to the questioner.

Those on tour experienced how warm interior classrooms without windows can get. Room temperature Wednesday night was 84 degrees. School is called off when those temperatures reach 90. People were sweating.
People saw cracks in closets, chipped paint around leaky windows, multi-colored tiles in hallways (because the original design is no longer available).
The tour descended deep into the junior high basement to the boiler room. A Kewanee boiler, which appeared to be in mint condition, is still functioning - about 50 years beyond its expected life. Kewanee ceased production in 2002, although parts are still available from a company in Pennsylvania. Still, if it breaks down, it will cause a problem.

The clock system in the high school doesn't work, although some individual clocks do, if powered by batteries. There is no voice mail. The bell system doesn't work.

Companies that provided those services are no longer around. Versteeg explained that the school district can't simply contract with local firms that appear to have excellent longevity prospects. The school is a public entity and must put items up for bid.

Those on tour visited the high school library, which Versteeg called, "a disgrace. When you're bringing prospective students and families through the school, this is a tough place to visit. Even our own people don't want to be in here."

The library is dark, and there are stains on the carpeting and on the ceiling.

Refreshments were provided at the end of the tours and people were free to remain to discuss various aspects of the bond issue.
No future tours are planned, although officials didn't rule out the possibility during the post-tour meeting. Versteeg also said he will conduct individual tours and to contact him for a time.

Dave Versteeg pointed out that clocks, bells and voice mail don't work.












A leaky window in the junior high.

Multi-colored tiles adorn hallways.