This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 12:43 PM- The Jordan School District today projected it will need more than $750 million in new bonding to pay for construction of renovation of schools it will need to build through 2016. If the projection proves true, the bond would be the largest ever requested by a school district in Utah.
With student enrollment projected to hit nearly 104,000 in 2016, the state's largest school district - assuming it stays intact - will need to build an estimated 26 new schools and remodel another 39 during that period.
The estimates came during a growth summit today attended by education and community leaders.
District officials said the majority of the new construction will be on the district's west side, a reality fueling discussions by east- side communities about the possibility of breaking off to form a new district to avoid having to pay for new west-side schools.
But Superintendent Barry Newbold said regardless of what happens, the Jordan district must start planning now for ways to fund new schools.
"It's clear there needs to be an additional infusion of resources," he said.
Information presented by the district suggests west-side taxpayers would shoulder an even greater tax burden if the district splits, and that concerns South Jordan Mayor Kent Money. "There's got to be a more equitable solution for educating our children than splitting districts when it comes to building new schools," he said.